Contracts of Employment
Contracts of employment are fundamental to the legal relationship between employer and employee. Indeed it is a legal requirement under s.1 of the Employment Rights Act for an employer to provide a statement of the main terms and conditions of employment within 13 weeks of the employment commencing.
Employers who fail to provide a contract of employment to their staff not only are in breach of s.1 but also miss an opportunity to shape the employment relationship as they would like it. Statutory laws and regulation often imply certain minimum requirements into the employment relationship, such as in respect of minimum notice periods, but an employer may want to improve upon the statutory provision. Similarly a prudent employer will want to set out its policy in respect of sickness pay and give itself the option to request a medical report on an employee when that person is absent on long-term sick leave. Statute doesn't give such a right.
We can draft contracts of employment for employers and we can review them for employees, if they want advice on their rights and obligations under the contract.