Fundamentals of Employment Contracts

Employment Contracts in Depth builds on a general knowledge of contract law. It reviews the law that underpins employment contracts to enable you to give advice about the practical and legal issues involved when drafting and amending employment contracts in different situations.

By the end of the training participants you will be able to:

• Appreciate the importance of contract law on the employment relationship
• Understand the importance of clarity and flexibility in drafting employment terms
• Understand the binding nature of contractual relationships
• Understand how to effectively amend the terms of an employment contract

CONTENT

Employment Status

• Who is an employee?
• Workers, self-employed and agency staff
• Casual and seasonal workers
• Employee-shareholder status

Types of Contract

• Permanent and temporary
• Part-time and fixed-term
• Other working patterns

Entering into an Employment Contract

• Job description, person specification
• Applications
• Interviews
• Offer and acceptance
• Withdrawal of offer
• Misrepresentation
• References
• Immigration
• Vetting and barring

Possible Sources of Contractual Obligations

• Statutory provisions
• Express and implied terms
• Custom and practice
• Collective agreements
• Disciplinary procedures

The Key Elements of an Employment Contract

• Written particulars of employment
• Express and implied terms
• Terms incorporated by reference to other documents
• Restrictive covenants
• Continuity of employment

Drafting an Employment Contract

• Basic and discretionary terms
• Drafting for flexibility
• Staff handbooks

TRAINING METHODOLOGY

The training methodology combines lectures, discussions, group exercises and illustrations. Participants will gain both theoretical and practical knowledge of the topics. The emphasis is on the practical application of the topics and as a result participant will go back to the workplace with both the ability and the confidence to apply the techniques learned to their duties.