Contracts of Employment

Contracts Of Employment
How does your business deal with employment contracts? This essential part of employment
law is often neglected or underused – particularly by busy, cash-strapped businesses.
But the right employment contracts, drafted in a way that’s specific to your company, can
save you thousands.

The importance of contracts for employers and employees
For employees, contracts are very important. They will state many of the benefits to which
they will be entitled, as well as the money that they can expect to earn. In the event of an
employment tribunal, if a business is found to have not issued a complete contract then it
could be fined up to a month’s pay.

And while contracts are certainly valuable for individuals, they can be just as essential to
businesses. There are a number of clauses that can be inserted into a contract in order to
protect a business’s interests – such as stopping employees from setting up rival
organisations, poaching your staff, stealing valuable trade secrets or even reclaiming
accidental overpayments.

There are plenty of employment contract templates to be found online. However, it’s
essential to create a contract that’s personalised and adapted to suit your business and its
goals.

How to adapt an employee’s contract
Many employers in Northern Ireland, Scotland and further afield ask us for advice on how
they can adapt an employee’s contract. Generally, in the first two years of employment, an
employee will only have limited ability to claim unfair treatment if their contract is amended.
However, if an employee has been working for a business for longer than two years, it
becomes much harder to change a contract without risking legal action. We would
recommend seeking the advice of the employee in question in a consultation.