Employment Contract Review

Reviewing the Employment Contacts

A contract of employment is the cornerstone of the employment relationship. It sets out an agreement between the employee and the employer, outlining the terms on which the employee is prepared to provide their services and the obligations the employee agrees to adhere to, in return for remuneration and other benefits.

The basic legal requirement is that an employee should be provided with a statement of the main terms of employment within before starting work or within one month of a change to their existing terms. Failure to do so can result in the employee being able to raise a claim against the employer at an Employment Tribunal. This is not a stand alone right but often an additional claim to the employee’s other causes of action against their employer.

It is a very important document and senior level contacts can often take some time to finalise the position for work purposes.

It is particularly important to define the relationship in terms of what is expected of the employee and their role and performance as well as what is expected in return in the form of payment, bonuses, commission, share options, flexible benefits and pensions etc.

Employment contracts can even address what needs to happen at the end of the relationship for example with notice periods, garden leave, pay in lieu of notice, as well as post-termination restrictions on the activities of the employee after they have left employment, preventing them from working with competitors and/or contacting clients and staff.

Getting these terms right at the outset can often prove highly valuable to employees in the long term.

Should you be starting a new job or role or if your employer is seeking to provide you with new, changed or enhanced terms of employment it is advantageous to review them with a specialist employment lawyer.

Should you wish to have a contract of employment, director’s service agreement or consultancy contract reviewed by one of our specialist team please email us at contact@duttongregory.co.uk or call a member of our team for employment law advice.