Employment Contracts
An Employment Contract is an Agreement between an Employer and an Employee that sets out Terms and Conditions of Employment.
A Contract can be in writing or verbal. It’s certainly preferable to be “in writing” because should a dispute occur this will be the information that is relied upon to gain resolution between the “Parties”.
An Employment Contract cannot provide for less than the legal minimum set out in the National Employment Standards (NES). All employees are covered by the NES, regardless of whether they’ve signed a contract. A contract can’t make an employee worse off than their minimum legal entitlements. In some circumstances there are minimum awards, enterprise agreements or other registered agreements that may apply.
When setting out the Terms of Employment it’s prudent to include -:
- Annual Base Salary
- Superannuation
- Minimum Hours of Work
- Additional Benefits
As suggested above when providing a “Job Offer” benefits such as motor vehicles, mobile telephones, car parking, job sharing, working from home etc. should all be outlined together with maximum costings attached so there is a full understanding by all parties.
The more well-informed and equipped an employee is the more likely they are to perform their role better. It’s also prudent to sit down with future or new employees to discuss the Employment Contract and obtain
their feedback or questions so that there may then be no ambiguity going forward.
In the large majority of situations it’s best to consult a Lawyer who specialises in Contract Law so that the document then becomes Legally binding. Source(s) used: National Employment Stand-
