The employment contract is a legal agreement between an employer and a staff member. It states the business relationship between them, including what compensation the staff member will receive in exchange for the work they do. It outlines the terms and conditions of employment.
It is always best to have a written contract, which should be written clearly in order to avoid misinterpretation. This protects both the employer and staff member throughout their working relationship. Organisations usually have a contract template which can be used for most staff members. It is important that a legal expert checks the contract template once it has been drafted. When a new member of staff is recruited, their relevant details, such as their name, job title and salary, are inserted. It is only necessary to check individual contracts with a legal expert if changes in the wording of the agreement need to be made for specific staff members. The contract should be signed and dated by both the staff member and a representative of the employer, and both should keep a copy.
The table below outlines what to consider including in an employment contract.Issue Name and address
Employment
Probationary period
What to consider
At the top of the contract, the names and addresses of both the employer and staff member should be stated
• Job title (refer to the job profile)
• Location of job
• Whom the staff member is responsible to (line manager)
• Start date
• Type of contract – permanent, fixed or casual
The probationary period is usually the first few weeks of the employment relationship. During this time the staff member is settling into their role in the organization and the employer is monitoring their progress. During the probationary period there should be opportunities for the line manager and the staff member to give Grade and salary
DeductionsAllowances
Working hours feedback to each other. This will help to build relationships and ensure that the staff member is well supported and carrying out their role effectively.
However, if there are problems that can not be resolved, it is helpful that the organization or the staff member can withdraw easily from the contract during the early stages. For this reason, the period of notice required for ending the contract during the probationary period is usually shorter than usual. For example, if the probationary period is six weeks, for the first six weeks the notice period for a member of staff could be two weeks. Once a staff member has successfully completed a probationary period, the notice period could change to four weeks.
• Grade
• Basic salary per year
• How it will be paid – cash, cheque, transfer to bank account
• When it will be paid – e.g. on the last working day of each calendar month
• The salary should grow each year in accordance with national inflation. It is therefore helpful to include a sentence saying that salaries will be reviewed each year and that staff members will be notified in writing of any changes
It is helpful to include a paragraph which says that the organization has the right to deduct from the staff member’s pay, government taxes and any amount which they owe to the organization. This amount could be losses to the organization due to negligence or breaking organizational policy.
Such as housing or transport provided
• Normal hours of work including days of week, start and finish times and lunch break
• Number of hours to be worked per week
Sickness and other absence
Retirement provision
Medical / Death in service
Notice period
Grievance and disciplinary procedures
• Whether the staff member is entitled to additional pay for working extra hours
• Number of days of basic annual leave entitlement
• When the organization’s annual leave period is, such as January to December
• How many days can be carried forward to the following year
• What happens upon termination of employment if too much or too little annual leave has been taken during the current year
• Whether leave on national holidays may be taken in addition to basic annual leave
• How many days of sick leave will be paid each year. Usually there is a limit, such as ten days, which may increase after a certain period of service
• How and when staff should inform their line managers if they are to be absent from work e.g. no later than one hour after the start of the working day
If there is a pension or saving scheme, give details of the amount that the staff member will be paid and when.
Give a summary of any medical or death in service provision by the organization
• Period of notice during probationary period
• Period of notice after probationary period
• How notice should be given
• Who the staff member should contact if they have any grievance relating to their employment. This could be the line manager
• Expectations about discipline. It may be helpful to refer to the staff handbook where policies and procedures are outlined
Health and safety
Equipment
Changes to terms of employment
• Organizations that take child protection seriously may take particular disciplinary action (such as immediate dismissal) against staff members who do not adhere to the policy or who withhold information. This should be outlined in the contract
• Refer to the organization’s health and safety policy
• How to inform the organization of accident, illness or other emergencies that affect the staff member
How work related expenses will be paid e.g. on production of receipt
It is helpful to have a paragraph about returning equipment provided by the organization at the end of the contract. If this is not mentioned in the contract, staff members may decide they can keep equipment such as laptop computers and mosquito nets.
In the future the organization may review it’s terms and conditions and as a result, may need to change its employment contracts with current staff. It is important to state this in the contract.