Top FIVE Mistakes to avoid when making employment contracts
Published: December 7, 2023
Are you making these common mistakes with employment contracts? Business Development Partner Will Mendoza talks about the common mistakes business owners end up making which can potentially cost them in the long run.
Read Transcript
Top five mistakes to avoid,
when making employment contracts.
As an employer,
you may enter into an employee agreement
outlining the terms
of an employment relationship.
These are called employment contracts.
They provide important protections
to employers,
business owners and employees.
It's easy to make a mistake,
so what are the top
five things to look out for?
One: Ignoring worker protection rights.
Employees are protected
by national employment standards,
with or without a contract.
You cannot provide
less than the minimum pay rates
or entitlement under the law,
even if it's signed off by the employee.
Two: Using the same contract for part-time,
fixed-term contract employees,
temps and permanent workers.
Worker protection laws provide
different levels
of benefits and guarantees
for workers in different categories.
Any employment contract you create
should recognize their status
and comply with the laws
applicable to them.
Using the right contract
for your employee is very important.
Three: Mistaking contracts
for employment policies.
An employment
contract sets out the obligation
or rights of the employer
and the employee.
Contracts are enforceable
until both parties agree
to make a change to the agreement.
Policies are rules or requirements
that you want your employees
to adhere to.
You want to keep these
in a separate document
so that you can make changes
from time to time without needing
written approval from your employee.
Four: Not updating your contracts
and agreements regularly.
The laws change constantly,
and new regulations are routinely passed
in the field of employment law.
If your contract is more than a year
old or recent
regulations have been passed
that impact your employees,
you may need to review and update them.
and Five:
Not adhering to contract provisions.
Once a contract has been created,
you must follow
all obligations within it.
If you don't adhere to the agreement,
you can find yourself in
breach of the contract.
If you have any questions,
you can call our advice line today
and check out Bright Lightning,
our AI-powered platform
that offers instant reliable answers
to your questions on HR
and employment relations matters.