An employment contract, or ‘contract of employment’, is an agreement between an employer and an employee which sets out their employment rights, responsibilities and duties. All employees are entitled to a written statement of their main employment terms within two months of starting work.

An employment contract consists of terms from a number of sources. The main source will usually be an express agreement which may be oral or in writing but additional terms may be incorporated into by explicit reference or by custom and practice. Other terms are implied into the contract by the law.

An employee's terms of employment will change over the course of most employment relationships. While changes by mutual consent are unlikely to cause problems, an employer or employee may also seek make unilateral changes to the employment terms. If a unilateral change is not opposed the law will consider the changed term to be incorporated into the Employment Contract. Whether an employment term has been breached is important to constructive dismissal claims.

WBW can advise you on the terms of your employment contract and implications of any variations.