Mark A. Nacol Business Law Blog on Lawyers.com

An
employer must within two months of the start of employment provide the
employee with written terms and conditions of employment.  There are different formats in which these terms and conditions may be presented, which include the following:

1.             A formal legal contract which is signed by both parties.  The
terms are often negotiable and can be tailored to include terms very
specific to the individual position and the employee concerned.

2.             A
“letter agreement” which may be detailed, or which simply sets out the
minimum information required under the Terms of Employment Act of 1994.  This letter is normally signed by the employee as an acceptance of the position offered.  This
letter might not contain sufficient detail to inform the employee fully
of their terms and conditions and may not be adequate to protect the
employer.

3.             A handbook may be presented which will comprise of the terms and conditions of employment.  The
employee is normally asked to sign an acknowledgment of receipt and
acceptance of the terms and conditions of employment contained in the
handbook.  The negative consequence of the
handbook is that it applies for all employees and specific terms are
not negotiable as they would be in a formal contract in the form of a
traditional legal document.

The
Term of Employment Act of 1994 requires some employers within two
months of an employee beginning employment to set out in writing the
terms and conditions of the job and to specifically include, but are
not limited to, the following:

Name of employer

Name of employee

Place of employment

Job title

Location of work (and if location may also be elsewhere or outside the state than further details must be given by the employer)

Start date

End date (if a temporary contract)

Work hours and details of overtime pay

Pay and frequency of payment

Benefits, such as bonus scheme, health insurance, 401(k), retirement, use of company car, payment of tuition fees, etc.

Holiday entitlements

Details of any sick pay scheme

Details of pension scheme

Minimum notice to end the employment relationship must be given by both employer and employee.

Employees can ask for written terms and conditions at any time and the employer must provide same within two months.  If
a person has been in employment since before the Terms of Employment
Act of 1994 and has never been issued written terms and conditions or a
contract of any type, the employee is still entitled to receive a
written copy of these terms.  If, however, an
employee has been in employment without a contract, an employer cannot
force an employee to sign a contract of employment and employment will
continue under the “custom and practice” created between the employer
and employee.

The employment contract is equally as important to the employer as the employee.  Employers can use contracts to their advantage, especially in times when jobs are scarce.  Employment
contracts often set out such things as probationary periods, sick pay
scheme, additional leave which might be taken, pension scheme and any
further benefits to be provided by the employer.

The
great advantage to the employer is there, in some cases, are many items
which can be included to protect the employer such as a restrictive
covenant restricting a former employee from taking employment within a
specified geographical area, a clause which would prohibit a former
employee from doing business with the employer’s clients for a
specified period of time or a confidentiality clause wherein the
employee must keep all trade secrets of the employer confidential.  Employers can set out the minimum notice an employee must give to terminate employment.

Employment contracts should be well drafted and should include proper protection for both the employee and employer.  A well drafted contract may save a company thousands of dollars in legal fees.