The Business Support Initiative
NEXT SALES MASTER CLASS: WEDS 29TH JANUARY 2020
  • Home
  • Sales Master Class
    • Sales Master Class - Stratford - (Near M40)
    • Sales Master Class - About The Trainer
    • Sales Master Class - Feedback & Reviews
    • Check Availability - Sales Master Class
    • Tailored, In-House Sales Master Class
  • Telemarketing!
    • Why Choose Bizfinders?
    • Award Winning Sales Expertise
    • Appointment Making
    • Lead Generation
    • New Client Acquisition
    • Customer Base Development
    • Database Enhancement
    • Event Attendee Booking
    • Enquire Now - Telemarketing Trial
  • Grow
    • Starting Up A Business
    • Deciding On A Business Legal Structure
    • Corporation Tax
    • Employing Staff
    • Finding Staff
    • Grants & Funding
  • Improve
    • Marketing Consultancy Services
    • 22 Insightful Business Money Saving Ideas
    • How To Cold Call! - Top Tips For Telemarketing.
    • Marketing And Promotion
  • Facilitate
    • Are Your Business Premises Optimised Or Off-Putting?
    • Create A Better Working Environment
    • Executive De-Stress!
    • Are You Dialling Numbers Straight Out Of Your Company Bank Balance?
    • What Is VoIP And Should You Go There?
    • Are You Losing Money Due To A Lack Of IT Support?
  • Safeguard
    • Employers Health & Safety Legal Checklist
    • First Aid Regulations and Compliance
    • Facilities Employers Must Provide In The Workplace
    • Employers Liability Insurance
    • Are You Putting Your Business At Risk Due To A Lack Of Data Security?
    • Too Many Staff Pulling Sickies?
    • Medical & Educational Industry Offers!
  • Offers!
  • Top Tips!
  • About The BSI
  • Bespoke Business Savings Alerts
  • Contact Us
Employment Contracts & Statements of Particulars

Did you Know? An employer must give all employees a ‘written statement of employment particulars’ within 2 months of the start date of their employment.

Employment Contracts

All employees have an employment contract with their employer. A contract is an agreement that sets out an employee’s:
  • employment conditions
  • rights
  • responsibilities
  • duties
These are called the ‘terms’ of the contract.

Employees and employers must stick to a contract until it ends (eg by an employer or employee giving notice or an employee being dismissed) or until the terms are changed (usually by agreement between the employee and employer).
If a person has an agreement to do some work for someone (like paint their house), this isn’t an employment contract but a ‘contract to provide services’.

Accepting a contract

As soon as someone accepts a job offer they have a contract with their employer. An employment contract doesn’t have to be written down.

Contract terms

The legal parts of a contract are known as ‘terms’. An employer should make clear which parts of a contract are legally binding.

Contract terms could be:
  • in a written contract, or similar document like a written statement of employment
  • verbally agreed
  • in an employee handbook or on a company notice board
  • in an offer letter from the employer
  • required by law (eg an employer must pay employees at least the National Minimum Wage)
  • in collective agreements - negotiated agreements between employers and trade unions or staff associations
  • implied terms - automatically part of a contract even if they’re not written down

Implied terms


If there’s nothing clearly agreed between you and your employer about a particular issue, it may be covered by an implied term - for example:
  • employees not stealing from their employer
  • your employer providing a safe and secure working environment
  • a legal requirement like the right to a minimum of 5.6 weeks’ paid holidays including bank holidays
  • something necessary to do the job like a driver having a valid licence
  • something that’s been done regularly in a company over a long time like paying a Christmas bonus

Collective agreements

An employer may have an agreement with employees’ representatives (from trade unions or staff associations) that allows negotiations of terms and conditions like pay or working hours. This is called a collective agreement.

The terms of the agreement could include:
  • how negotiations will be organised
  • who will represent employees
  • which employees are covered by the agreement
  • which terms and conditions the agreement will cover

Written statement of employment particulars

An employer must give employees a ‘written statement of employment particulars’ if their employment contract lasts at least a month or more. This isn’t an employment contract but will include the main conditions of employment.

The employer must provide the written statement within 2 months of the start of employment.

If an employee works abroad for more than a month during their first 2 months’ employment, the employer must give them the written statement before they leave.

What a written statement must include

A written statement can be made up of more than one document (if the employer gives employees different sections of their statement at different times). If this does happen, one of the documents (called the ‘principal statement’) must include at least:

  • the business’s name
  • the employee’s name, job title or a description of work and start date
  • if a previous job counts towards a period of continuous employment, the date the period started
  • how much and how often an employee will get paid
  • hours of work (and if employees will have to work Sundays, nights or overtime
  • holiday entitlement (and if that includes public holidays)
  • where an employee will be working and whether they might have to relocate
  • if an employee works in different places, where these will be and what the employer’s address is
As well as the principal statement, a written statement must also contain information about:
  • how long a temporary job is expected to last
  • the end date of a fixed-term contract
  • notice periods
  • collective agreements
  • pensions
  • who to go to with a grievance
  • how to complain about how a grievance is handled
  • how to complain about a disciplinary or dismissal decision

What a written statement doesn’t need to include

The written statement doesn’t need to cover the following (but it must say where the information can be found):
  • sick pay and procedures
  • disciplinary and dismissal procedures
  • grievance procedures
NB: In Northern Ireland, a written statement must explain what the disciplinary rules and procedures are.

Working abroad

If an employee has to work abroad for more than a month, their employer must state:

  • how long they’ll be abroad
  • what currency they’ll be paid in
  • what additional pay or benefits they’ll get
  • terms relating to their return to the UK
This information can be given to the employee in a separate document.

An employer may send an employee to another country in the European Economic Area (EEA). In this situation employees must get the terms and conditions that are the legal minimum in that country for:

  • working hours and rest breaks
  • holiday entitlement
  • minimum pay (including overtime)

Download a Statement of Particulars Template:

Click here to Download a template of a written statement of particulars to fill out.


Read about Rest Break Entitlement... 

Read about Changing an Employment Contract...

<<Back to Employing Staff
Subscribe to our Money Saving Newsletter!
Read About Our Next Sales Master Class...

CALL OUR FRIENDLY TEAM ON: 0333 772 0229


© 2019 Bizfinders Business Support Ltd. All Rights Reserved. Registered in England Company No. 09124342  
The Business Support Initiative.

Member of The Institute of Direct Marketing
                                                                          Contact Us  Terms & Conditions  Privacy Policy .