By law, all employees are entitled to a written statement setting out the particulars of employment. The statement has to be supplied within 2 months of the start of employment. Any changes during employment have to be notified within 1 month.
All employees have this right, regardless of the size of the employer's business and the number of days/hours that the employee works - the only exception to this rule is for employees who are taken on for less than 1 month.
If an employer fails to provide the written statement, the employee is entitled to make an application to an Employment Tribunal. The Tribunal will then make a declaration as to what those particulars are. Clearly it is better for the employer to make that decision and not the Tribunal!
There is no financial penalty for failing to supply the written statement unless the employee brings and succeeds on a separate claim (such as for unfair dismissal or discrimination). If, at the hearing of that separate claim, the Tribunal discovers that a written statement was not supplied, it will award the employee compensation of between 2 and 4 weeks' pay.
The written statement must contain details of the following:
- The names of the employer and employee
- The date when the employment began
- The date on which the period of continuous employment began (this is relevant if you have acquired or merged with another business)
- The rate of pay
- The intervals at which payment is made
- Hours of work
- Holiday entitlement, including setting out how accrued holiday pay on termination is calculated
- Sickness and sick pay
- Pensions and pension schemes (including whether there is any "contracting out” certificate in force)
- Notice period - or, if it the employment is for a fixed term, the start and end dates
- Job title/description
- Place of work
- Whether any collective agreements with trade unions apply
- Provisions if the employee is required to work outside the UK for more than 1 month
- Disciplinary and grievance procedures
The particulars relating to the names of the employer/employee, start date, pay, hours of work, holidays, job title/description and place of work must be in a single document - with the others, you can refer to other documents, most typically a staff handbook.
In most cases, it is sensible for businesses to provide contracts of employment before the employee starts containing not only all of the above matters but other matters that protect the business. In particular:
- A confidential information clause
- A "company property” clause
- An Intellectual property clause
- Post-termination restrictive covenants designed to protect the business after a key employee leaves
In addition to all of the above, it is sensible for businesses to have various policies and procedures in place. At minimum, you should have disciplinary and grievance procedures setting out how such matters will be addressed during employment.
However, depending on the size and nature of the business, other policies/procedures might also be appropriate, including:
- Equal opportunities
- Anti-harassment and bullying
- Capability (unless addressed in your disciplinary procedure)
- Whistleblowing
- Sickness absence
- Family rights (including maternity, paternity, parental leave, etc)
- Health and safety
- No smoking
- Electronic information and communications systems
- Data protection
- Social media
- Redundancy
- Retirement
Some businesses state that their handbooks form part of the contract of employment. In most cases, we do not recommend this for two reasons. Firstly, if an employer fails to follow a policy/procedure (either deliberately or inadvertently) that would give the employee a claim for breach of contract on top of any other claim he/she might have (e.g. unfair dismissal, discrimination, etc). Secondly, as businesses evolve, policies and procedures will need to change - if they form part of the employee's contract of employment, you would need the consent of all the employees to any such changes. Non-contractual policies and procedures can be varied by the employer without needing to obtain the consent of the staff.
As we say, we are always there for businesses who are in our BLUE LAW scheme, so we invite you to join BLUE LAW now. Once you have joined, we try to answer any legal enquiries that you have, free of charge. If legal work is needed, we give you a price, and you are then free to "shop around". If you wish to speak to us now, please click on "Please Contact Me Now” or call us on 0800 084 3256. We look forward to always being there for you.
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We set your contracts, policies and procedures up so that they are fully compliant and so that they give your business maximum protection.
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