Contracts of Employment

What is a Contract?

Individuals employed for more than one month have the legal right to written terms and conditions of employment within two months of starting work.

Contracts exist to ensure that the employee and employer each know what to expect from the other. It will detail the job and conditions of employment. The contract should include information about the standard of behaviour you expect from your employee while he or she is working for you.

Contracts of employment can be any length you want to make them. It is up to you to decide how much detail you wish to include.

It is advisable to be careful about what you include in your contract, as it is a legally binding document.

What are Written Particulars of Employment?

Your employees are entitled by law to receive a written statement listing the terms and conditions of the post, provided that their employment lasts for one month or more. The statement must be provided within two months of your employee starting to work for you.

The terms and conditions of employment are anything that was agreed in writing or verbally when your employee began working for you.

Particulars of Employment should include information about the following;

• Job title.
  
• Place of work.
  
• Name and address of employer and employee.
  
• Rate of pay and how it is calculated including rate for unsociable hours.
  
• Date the employment period begins.
  
• Hours of work (daily or weekly).
  
• Method and timing of wage payment.
  
• Period of notice to be given by the employee and the employer.
  
• Period for which the contract is expected to continue if it is temporary.
  
• Date when the contract is due to end if it is fixed term.
  
• Any pension arrangements you may wish to offer.
  
• Disciplinary and Grievance Procedure.
  
• Entitlement to holidays.
  
• Entitlement to sick or maternity pay etc.

Disciplinary, Grievance and Dismissal Procedures

Since April 2005 regulations have applied giving new rights and responsibilities to employers and employees. All employers must follow minimum procedures for dealing with disciplinary action, grievances and dismissal. For further details, please see our information sheet on Disciplinary, Dismissal and Grievance procedures.

Below are a few other things you may wish to consider

House Rules

As the place of work is your home, it is your right to state what type of behaviour is or is not acceptable to you. You may wish to ask your Personal Assistant to refrain from using bad language in your home, bringing other people or animals to work, using a telephone or mobile except in a emergency.

Reliability and Flexibility

These are essential to good personal support arrangements and should be included in the contract. You should be clear about what employees should do when they are not available for work.

Mobility

If it is important for you that your employee has means of independent travel, you should refer to it in the contract.

Probation

If you employ staff for a probation (trial) period, you should include the length of time it will last.

Expenses/Allowances

You should state if you will provide meals and travel expenses etc. You may not use money from Direct Payments to purchase meals for your Personal Assistant(s).

Click on the links below for examples of styles of contract that you may wish to use.

Please note:

The example employment contracts included on this website are intended for guidance purposes only. You should base your contract to suit your own situation.

Contract option one

Contract option two

Contract option three