What are contracts of employment?
Contracts of Employment and Staff Handbooks are key guidelines that build the relationship between employer and employee to ensure standards, safe working and mutual understanding of the business culture and expectations. Having this clear from the outset can help mitigate future issues and misunderstandings.
Why do contracts of employment matter?
In line with the Employment Rights Act (1996) an employer should issue a Written Statement of Particulars to an employee within two months of their first day of work. It best practice to issue this as soon as possible, even prior to the first day of employment to ensure a mutual agreement can be established.
A Written Statement of Particulars is the information from a contract that you must issue to the employee. Employers then choose to include other information and policies which commonly form a Contract of Employment.
If an employee does not receive a contract within this time frame, if it is not mutually agreed or the information is not in line with legislation, then the employee could raise a formal grievance or make a claim.
It is also important to issue a Contract of Employment so both parties, the employer and employee, know their responsibilities and what is expected of them. Having clear guidelines and frameworks in place from the outset will help to mitigate lack of understanding and deviation from keeping a safe and supported working environment.
How can we help you with contracts of employment?
We can :
- review your current Contracts of Employment (and other contractual documentation) to ensure they are compliant with legislation and employment law
- tailor your policies and Contracts of Employment to your business needs and culture
- support and advise should an employee make a claim or raise a grievance
- issue a new Contract of Employment template to replace previous practice or implement anew if there was no agreements prior in place
- issue a Management Pack including documents, templates and letters to help manage a new starter and ensure all the right systems and procedures are in place for continual business functioning