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Working without a written contract
mexicanhat
Posts: 30 Forumite
I have just been offerred a new job and have received the offer in writing.
I have always worked for very large multi national Companies and the Company that I am intending to move to is very small and only has 10-15 employees.It is long established and has an excellent track record. However when I asked for the formal contract I was told there is not one. They say that they have never needed one and that any that my employment will be governed by employment legislation. Everything thing else about the job is really good. Half of me thinks this is how small Companies work but it makes me feel wary.
Has anyone got any experience of this? The offer letter covers most of the main issues but I am worried that a misunderstanding may develop at a later date.
I have always worked for very large multi national Companies and the Company that I am intending to move to is very small and only has 10-15 employees.It is long established and has an excellent track record. However when I asked for the formal contract I was told there is not one. They say that they have never needed one and that any that my employment will be governed by employment legislation. Everything thing else about the job is really good. Half of me thinks this is how small Companies work but it makes me feel wary.
Has anyone got any experience of this? The offer letter covers most of the main issues but I am worried that a misunderstanding may develop at a later date.
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Comments
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At least they seem to know what the employment legislation is, at the end of the day for the first year a contract is not worth the paper it is written on anyway.
Just make sure before you go into the job you know what your pay is, what holidays you get, what the sick pay is and what other benefits there maybe.The Googlewhacker referance is to Dave Gorman and not to my opinion of the search engine!
If I give you advice it is only a view and always always take professional advice before acting!!!
4 people on the ignore list....Bliss!0 -
They say that they have never needed one and that any that my employment will be governed by employment legislation
thats convenient
http://www.legislation.gov.uk/ukpga/1996/18/contents
Start with
http://www.legislation.gov.uk/ukpga/1996/18/part/I
the very first part of employment legislation is
Where an employee begins employment with an employer, the employer shall give to the employee a written statement of particulars of employment.0 -
getmore4less wrote: »Where an employee begins employment with an employer, the employer shall give to the employee a written statement of particulars of employment.
That is not a contract of employment.
They are two entirely different things.0 -
Googlewhacker wrote: »At least they seem to know what the employment legislation is, at the end of the day for the first year a contract is not worth the paper it is written on anyway.
Where did you get that from?
A contract of employment is binding from day one.0 -
Where did you get that from?
A contract of employment is binding from day one.
Well true but I was talking in the context of dismissal. Unless it is discriminatory in the eyes of the law or a statutory reason then in the first year you can be dismissed for no reason.
So really it isn't worth the paper its written on because say the boss decides that you are not woth £6.90 an hour and wants someone on NMW and you are within the first year of employment. They could find a way of dismissing you and then hiring someone on the lower wage with no comeback.The Googlewhacker referance is to Dave Gorman and not to my opinion of the search engine!
If I give you advice it is only a view and always always take professional advice before acting!!!
4 people on the ignore list....Bliss!0 -
Googlewhacker wrote: »Well true but I was talking in the context of dismissal. Unless it is discriminatory in the eyes of the law or a statutory reason then in the first year you can be dismissed for no reason.
So really it isn't worth the paper its written on because say the boss decides that you are not woth £6.90 an hour and wants someone on NMW and you are within the first year of employment. They could find a way of dismissing you and then hiring someone on the lower wage with no comeback.
Well, it would depend on what was written in the contract obviously.
In any case, if I were sacked simply because my job was to go to somebody on a lesser wage and for no other reason then I would sue for wrongful dismissal/breach of contract.
So there is comeback.0 -
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getmore4less wrote: »AIUI for employment the particulars are the superset and include the contract.
Where do you think they differ?
Particulars of Employment are one thing, an employment contract is another, they are not the same, one is mandatory (Particulars) the other is not obligatory (the contract).
Particulars need only contain the very basics about your job, eg job title, hours of work, salary, holidays etc etc
It may not even be a single document headed 'Particulars of Employment' as all the info may be on the job advert, letter offering employment etc etc, this is enough for the statutory Particulars.
An employment contract would usually be much more detailed but there is not even an obligation to provide one in writing, it can be oral.
Do not confuse the two, they are not the same thing!0 -
Well, it would depend on what was written in the contract obviously.
In any case, if I were sacked simply because my job was to go to somebody on a lesser wage and for no other reason then I would sue for wrongful dismissal/breach of contract.
So there is comeback.
Not in the first year...The Googlewhacker referance is to Dave Gorman and not to my opinion of the search engine!
If I give you advice it is only a view and always always take professional advice before acting!!!
4 people on the ignore list....Bliss!0 -
Googlewhacker wrote: »Not in the first year...
Don't be daft.
There is no qualifying period for wrongful dismissal/breach of contract.
In fact, it can happen even before taking up a post depending on what the breach was.0
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