When creating an employment contract template for a new employee it might be tempting to avoid legal fees and download the first free online template you find. However, creating legal documents without prior legal expertise can be risky. Is the template up-to-date? Is it compliant with employment laws? Is it even valid for your jurisdiction or specific use case? In this article, Legislate will provide a better way to create your employment contracts online on no legal budget.
What is a contract of employment?
A contract of employment is an agreement between an employer and an employee. In exchange for a salary and pension, an employee will perform duties for the employer which are defined in the employment agreement. An employee can be hired on a part-time or full-time basis and an employer must set up a pension scheme for their employees. The employer and the employee have the right to terminate the employment by providing appropriate notice. Employers can also employ people with a written statement of work but this is less beneficial for employees.
What type of employees can be hire with a contract of employment?
Employment contracts can be used for part-time or full-time employees and be indefinite or fixed-term contracts. Employees must be paid the national minimum wage or higher. If you are hiring an intern, depending on the type of work they might need to be hired as an employee.
What are the key terms of an Employment contract?
There are a number key clauses in a contract of employment which need to be included to provide the employer and employee with sufficient protection. Below are some of the key terms of employment which need to be included:
- Who is the employer and the employee?
- What is the employee's job description, place of work and remuneration?
- When is the start date of the employment? When is the end date if the employment is fixed term?
- How much time off is the employee entitled to and does annual leave entitlement include public holidays?
- The employee agrees to protect the employer's confidential information and intellectual property rights.
- The notice period the employer and employee must use to terminate this agreement.
- Is the employee entitled to sick pay in addition to statutory sick pay?
- Details of employer's grievance procedures and disciplinary procedures.
Curious about automated data extraction from documents?
The best way to create your Employment agreement online
Legislate helps you create a lawyer-approved employment agreement online in minutes and on no legal budget. To get started, complete the following steps:
- Sign up to Legislate.
- Click on create a contract.
- Select Employment agreement from the list of available contracts.
- Answer simple questions about the employment such as the job title, hours of work, whether a probationary period will be included or not and holiday entitlement. This will set the terms of the contract.
- Choose a simple pricing plan starting at £9.95 per agreement to preview the contract and invite parties for signature.
You can also use Legislate to formalise job offers with employment offer letters. You can also provide additional employment policies to your employees such as a staff handbook, anti-bribery and corruption policy and a modern slavery policy.
What else can you do with Legislate?
Legislate is an easy-to-use contract management platform which offers standardised legal documents which you can tailor on your own by answering simple questions. Legislate allows you to streamline your contracts whilst offering a professional experience. Moreover, with Legislate you can access key contract statistics in real-time. To get started, read a tutorial, book a demo or create an account now!
About Legislate
Legislate is a contracting platform where business owners can create contracts to help grow and develop their business. Legislate's employment offer letters and contracts are key in protecting your IP and Legislate's NDAs are crucial to ensure you can have conversations and partnerships to help develop your business and brand. Book a demo or sign up today to put the confidence back into contracting.
The opinions on this page are for general information purposes only and do not constitute legal advice on which you should rely.