Everyone who has staff knows what they need to know €“ or at least they think they do.

1. WHAT CATEGORY DO YOUR STAFF FALL IN TO?

I don’t mean are they good or bad, or reliable or flaky, but what is their legal status. They can come under any one of a number of headings

a. Self employed
b. Employed
c. Worker
d. Intern

What category they fall in to will determine what your rights and obligations are. So if you don’t know the difference between the categories, then there is a risk that you are not meeting your legal requirements, and ignorance of the law is no excuse!

2. WHAT ARE THE TERMS OF THEIR ENGAGEMENT?

Ideally whatever category the fall in to, all your staff will have some something in writing setting out what the legal position is. What their rate of pay is, what their hours are, what is expected of them etc. However, if they are employed by you, having a contract is a legal requirement, and a failure to comply can have consequences.

3. WHAT SHOULD A CONTRACT LOOK LIKE?

Contracts can be all shapes and sizes and it really depends on what you need. In reality, there are only 12 pieces of information that must be in a contract. Whether you put more detail in depends on what you are looking to achieve. Sometimes simple really is safer.

4. HOW DO I END A CONTRACT?

Obviously that depends on what type of contract you have, and what the contract says, but assuming it is with an employee, if they have been with you for at least two years, it is essential that you have a fair disciplinary procedure and that you follow it. If you don’t, and you dismiss someone, it will almost certainly be unfair (even if you can show that had you followed a policy you would still have dismissed that person) and you could be liable for damages that could be over £72,000!

5. WHAT SHOULD I DO NEXT?

Hopefully, nothing above will come as a surprise to you, but if it does, download our gift voucher for an hour’s free legal advice, and we will talk through with you what you have in place, and what you might need to make sure you are better protected.