Employment law
Our employment law updates and factsheets keep you up to date and informed on key employment law issues
Gives introductory guidance on employee contracts and handbooks
Discusses the reasons for having a written contract of employment and the employment law governing terms and conditions of employment. Then sets out the terms and conditions that need to be provided to employees in writing under the Terms of Employment (Information) Acts 1994-2014. Finally compares employment contracts and employee handbooks and warns that terms set out in staff handbooks are often treated as part of the employee contract especially when they concern grievance procedures.
There is no legal requirement that an employment contract has to be in writing although see the section on the Terms of Employment (Information) Acts 1994-2014 below. The advantage of having a contract in writing is that it sets out the terms agreed between the employer and the employee providing a level of certainty in the relationship.
Over the years, some legislation has specified minimum terms which apply in the absence of a contractual agreement and other legislation has specified minimum standards of employment which cannot be varied by contract or otherwise. Examples of such legislation include:
Log in to view more of this content. If you don't have a web account why not register to gain access to more of the CIPD's resources. Please note that some of our resources are for members only.
The Terms of Employment (Information) Acts 1994-2014 impose an obligation on employers to provide employees with the following terms and conditions in writing:
The employer is required to provide the employee with this statement no later than two months after the employee starts work. Whenever a change is made, the employer is obliged to notify the employee in writing of the change as soon as possible but no later than one month after the change takes effect.
An employee may present a complaint to an Adjudication Officer that their employer has contravened certain provisions of the Act. An Adjudication Officer has the power to:
Any statement so altered, or added to, will be deemed to have been given to the employee by the employer.
The Adjudication Officer is also empowered to order the employer to pay the employee such compensation as is just and equitable of up to four weeks' remuneration.
The Industrial Relations (Amendment) Act 2012 has amended the Terms of Employment (Information) Acts 1994–2014 by providing for an alternative mechanism for compliance. Where an Inspector (as defined within the meaning of the Workplace Relations Act 2015) believes an employer has not complied with one of the specified obligations under the Act, they may give a direction to an employer to comply with that obligation within a certain period of time.
Where the employer complies with the direction or where the specified period has not elapsed, the employee may not take a claim to the Adjudication Officer. If the employer does not comply with a direction within the specified period, then the employee may take a claim to the Adjudication Officer.
In reality most employers incorporate their statutory obligations under the 1994 Act into the contract of employment and head the document Contract of employment including those particulars required to be given pursuant to the Terms of Employment (Information) Acts 1994–2014.
Handbooks generally set out in greater detail, for example, how absence on the grounds of sickness will be dealt with. In many instances, the contract may make a reference to the handbook or a policy in the handbook, for example, all grievances will be conducted in accordance with the grievance procedure contained in the staff handbook.
A question that sometimes arises is whether or not the grievance procedure set out in the handbook forms part of the contract of employment. Generally, the answer is yes. Some contracts specifically state that the sections of the handbook referred to in the contract will form part of the contract of employment, but that the rest of the handbook is for employees’ information and guidance only, although they will be expected to comply with its provisions. Others state quite clearly that the handbook does not form part of the contract of employment.
Where the employer provides both a contract and a handbook, it can be useful to include a provision in the contract that, if there is any inconsistency between the terms of the contract and the handbook, the terms of the contract will apply. The handbook, itself, should include a reference to the fact that the employer has a right to amend or update the handbook as and when necessary.
Our employment law updates and factsheets keep you up to date and informed on key employment law issues