PERS leaflet no 1 April 2014 Promoting effective workplaces
Contracts of Employment What you need to know about: Statutory and contractual rights Written statement of employment particulars Negotiating better pay and terms
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Your statutory rights at work As an employee, you have a number of statutory (legal) rights at work. Some of these apply from the time you are offered a job and some of them depend on your length of service. See ‘Check Your Rights’ at the end of this leaflet.
Your contractual rights In addition to your statutory rights, you have contractual rights. These are contained in your contract of employment. They are agreed between you and your employer and include, for example, your rate of pay, overtime pay, company sick pay and pension. You have a contract of employment even if you have not been given one in writing. As soon as you start working for an employer, there is a legally binding employment contract between you. This consists of anything that is agreed between you verbally, in writing, or anything that happens by accepted practice at your workplace. Your employer cannot argue that you have no rights because you have no written contract.
The written statement You have the legal right to receive a Written Statement of Employment Particulars within two months of starting your job, no matter how many hours you work per week. This is an important agreement and forms the basis on which pay and conditions can be improved. If you do not have a written statement this may be an appropriate time to negotiate one. If it is incomplete or inadequate you may wish to improve it. Even though your contract is wider than the written statement, in that it recognises verbal agreements and accepted practice, it can be difficult to prove what has been said or done in the past. This is why it is important to make sure you get all agreements in writing. The Written Statement should give the following information: • your name and the name of your employer • the date the employment began • whether any employment with a previous employer counts as part of this employment • the job title or a brief description of your employment/ work • the place of work or, where you are to work at various places, an indication
• • • • • • • • • •
of that and the address of the employer that you will not be required to work outside the UK for more than a month or details of work outside the UK ( location, dates, currency etc.) the rate of pay and at what intervals you will be paid hours of work: normal hours, overtime etc. (See PERS fact sheet Hours & Breaks) holiday entitlement and payment (See PERS leaflet No 4. Paid Holidays) amount of notice to be given by you and the employer if the job is temporary, the period for which it is expected to continue or, if it is a fixed term, the date on which it is to end any collective agreements which directly affect your terms and conditions details of the employer’s grievance and disciplinary procedures, sickness pay and arrangements (See PERS leaflet No. 3 Statutory Sick Pay) pension and superannuation scheme details, and, where there are 5 or more employees, details of the stakeholder pension.
Your employment particulars may refer you to other documents which should be made available to you with further information about your entitlement to sick pay, pension, disciplinary and grievance rules and procedures, maternity leave and pay, redundancy. Written Statements must contain terms which are at least as good as the statutory minimum, although sometimes they may specify contractual terms which are better than this. Terms where statutory minimums apply include: • • • • • • • •
Hourly wage rate Daily and weekly breaks Paid holidays Sick pay Maternity leave and pay Notice requirements Redundancy Disciplinary and grievance procedure
Sometimes you may agree to contractual terms which override statutory limits where these apply. Be very careful before you agree to this. Terms like this include:
• working more than 48 hours in a week • having money taken out of your wages for breakages, till shortages etc. • working in shops on Sundays. The government produces a basic model Written Statement of Employment Particulars. You can also find a range of model written statements for different types of employment relationships on PERS website at www.pers.org.uk If you request your Written Statement from your employer, and are dismissed for doing so, you could have a case for unfair dismissal, regardless of your length of service, hours of work or age. This is because you would be 'asserting a statutory right'. See PERS leaflet No.11 Dismissal for more information. Employment Tribunals have powers to award compensation to employees who have not received a Written Statement, in certain circumstances.
Recent legislation The government frequently introduces changes to employment legislation and there have been a lot of changes in recent years. Some of these measures may affect your existing contract. Changes can affect rights to holidays, breaks, maximum hours of work and national minimum wage rates. There are additional protections and rights for part-time and fixed-term workers and most recently new rights for agency workers have come into effect. There have been major improvements to rights to maternity and family leave, including paid paternity and adoption leave - see PERS leaflet No. 5 Maternity and Paternity Rights. There has also been significant change in equality legislation see PERS leaflet No. 8 Discrimination. Please contact PERS for more information about any of these matters.
Changes to your contract Your employer should not change your terms and conditions without your agreement. If your employer wants to make a variation to one or more of the terms and conditions agreed in the Written Statement of Employment Particulars, then he or she must give you written notification of this. Written notification should be given as soon as possible, and at any rate no later than one month after the variation is made. If your employer tries to impose a variation without your agreement, this will be a breach of contract. You must formally object, preferably in writing, to any changes to your contract or you could be seen to have accepted the new terms and conditions. If the change is significantly
important, you may be able to claim constructive dismissal, see PERS leaflet No. 11 Dismissal. This whole area is complicated – please seek advice if your employer wants to change your terms and conditions. You can also look at PERS Action Pack No. 1 Changes to employment contracts.
Negotiating contractual terms If you want to change, amend or clarify your contract because you think some of the terms and conditions are unfair or unclear, you will need to convince your employer that the changes are reasonable and will not damage their business. You may need to negotiate and to accept less than you first ask for. It will help if you can provide evidence of what similar companies offer their workers in terms of pay, holidays, sick pay or whatever you want to negotiate about. If the terms and conditions of other companies are better than yours, you will have to use this information as a general guideline only.
Points to remember • Where possible involve your workmates. You will be able to negotiate much more effectively as a team. • Put all the information you have gathered to support your case in an organised and formal way. • Decide exactly what it is you all wish to achieve. • See if you can negotiate six monthly or annual reviews of your pay. This may be more acceptable to you, and your employer, than a substantial one-off increase and will ensure your wage keeps pace with inflation. • You may have taken on extra responsibilities or acquired new skills which are not reflected in your wages. If you have, this should count in your favour. • Try to avoid conflict. A non-confrontational approach is more likely to put your employer in a frame of mind where he/she is willing to listen.
Other things to watch out for Employers have a number of obligations towards you as an employee, many of which are detailed in other PERS leaflets. The following are some of the other areas of employment rights to keep in mind. • Your employer has a general duty to ensure the health, safety and welfare of all employees. If your employer has more than 5 employees, then there must be a written health and safety policy. • Watch out for unlawful deductions from your wages. Deductions are only
legal if they have been agreed in writing between you and your employer, or if they are required by law (such as income tax and national insurance). For more information about unlawful deductions and how to get back any money owed to you, look at PERS Action Pack No. 2 A Fair Day's Pay. • If you are laid off from work because there is no work for you to do, you may be entitled to a guarantee payment. • You have the right to time off work for certain trade union and public duties. • Employers with 5 or more employees must give their employees access to a stakeholder pension.
Trade unions In Britain millions of workers belong to trade unions. Unions have a long history and much experience in assisting workers in their negotiations for improved pay and conditions of employment. In many instances a unionised workplace will offer better terms than a non-unionised workplace. A worker has a legal right to join a trade union and not to be victimised for doing so. However, for some workers, involving a union in negotiations is almost impossible. This can be because employers are hostile to unions and therefore other workers are frightened of joining, or because there are only one or two people in the workplace. If your employer does not recognise a trade union, then this avenue of negotiation will not be available to you. However, you may still find other advantages as an individual in joining a union. For further information see PERS leaflet No. 12 Trade Unions.
More information Other publications are available on our website www.pers.org.uk If you have questions about your employment rights you can contact our helpline 01924 428030 for advice and information. This is free for some disabled people in Yorkshire and Humber. We will try to signpost you on to alternative free provision if we are not funded to help you or we can offer advice on an affordable pay as you go basis. Although we are not able to represent you in court or at an Employment Tribunal, we may be able to refer you to another organisation that can help you.
Check your rights
Statutory Rights:
Right starts:
Protection from discrimination on grounds of race, religion or belief, Immediately sex or sexuality, disability or age. Right to equal treatment for part-time and fixed term workers Immediately Right to equal pay for work of equal value Immediately Right to receive the national minimum wage Immediately Entitlement to 5.6 weeks paid holiday a year Immediately Right to time off for antenatal appointments Immediately Right to 52 weeks maternity leave Immediately Right to return to work after maternity leave Immediately Right to written reasons for dismissal when pregnant Immediately Right to statutory sick pay Immediately Entitlement to dependants' leave Immediately Protection from unfair dismissal for asserting a statutory right; asking for equal treatment to full-timers; reasons related to trade union activities, pregnancy, paternity, adoption, parental or dependants' leave; for a health & safety reason; for refusing to work Immediately on Sunday; for 'whistle blowing'; for reasons connected with Working Time Regulations, National Minimum Wage, Tax Credits Act, acting as a pension trustee or employee representative. Right to time off for trade union duties/activities, for appointed Immediately safety reps, or for public duties Right to receive itemised pay statement Immediately Right not to have unauthorised deduction from wages Immediately Entitlement to 20 min rest break if working more than 6 hours Immediately Right not to work more than 48 hours a week on average Immediately Right to guarantee payments when laid off After 1 month Right to notice/notice pay Right to Written Statement of Employment Particulars Within 2 months Right to statutory maternity pay 26 weeks prior to the 14th week before the Right to statutory paternity leave and pay baby is due Right to adoption leave and pay Right to apply for flexible working if entitled After 6 months Entitlement to Parental Leave After 1 year Right to written reasons for dismissal After 2 years Right to claim unfair dismissal Right to statutory redundancy payment Please note: Other qualifications may apply e.g earnings level, age, employment status industrial sector.
Employment advice line 01924 428030 Monday and Friday 10am to 1pm Tuesday, Wednesday and Thursday10am to 4pm Evening session Tuesday 5.30pm to 7.30pm Our service is currently free to some disabled people in Yorkshire and Humber. Reasonable rates apply for other workers, organisations and employers. Visit our website for details.
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The information in this leaflet was accurate at the time of going to press. It is intended as a guide and is not a full statement of the law. Seek advice before taking action. You can feedback about our service by clicking on the link on our website. Š 2015 Pay & Employment Rights Service (Yorkshire) Ltd Company No 2201619 Registered charity 1097401 Suite 35 Batley Business Centre Technology Drive Batley WF17 6ER