Contracts of employment (written statements of particulars)

What is the difference between a contract of employment and a statement of written particulars of employment?
Why should my staff have contracts rather than written particulars?
Who do I need to give written particulars (as a minimum) to?
Do I need to give written particulars (as a minimum) to staff before they start work for me?
What does ‘breach of contract’ mean and what can happen as a result?
What is the penalty for not providing a written contract or a statement of written particulars within 2 months?
What do I need to do with the contract once I've produced it?
Do I need to issue a new contract every year or every time something changes?
My (existing) employees won't sign the contract! What do I do?
What does 'Continuous Service' mean & why is it significant?
Which contract should I use?
Can I write my own contractual clauses?
What is a contractual amendment?
The contract of employment states the terms of the relationship between you and your employee. Changing one of those terms requires a contractual amendment, or in some cases (e.g. a promotion) a new contract altogether. Some changes are so minor that only an amendment to contract might be required, rather than issuing a complete new version. For example, if you increase an employee's pay, you should send them a letter confirming the new rate of pay. A copy of the letter should be kept on file, and this will constitute a 'contractual amendment'. Myhrdept.co.uk contains various template letters to achieve contractual amendments (these are not available to 'free pack' users of myhrdept.co.uk).

Note that whilst minor contractual amendments caused by changes to the law or increases in pay etc are unlikely to cause difficulty, employers must not unilaterally change the terms of employment without agreement. To do so could give rise to a fundamental breach of contract, allowing the employee to resign and claim they have effectively been dismissed as a result of your breaching their contractual rights. This is known as 'constructive dismissal'. See our employer's guide to varying contracts of employment for more on this.