What are written particulars of employment?
An employer must give “written particulars of employment” to all employees within 1 month of joining. Written particulars must contain all the basic terms of the employment contract as specified in section 1 of the Employment Rights Act 1996.
These are the particulars specified in the legislation and which need to be provided to employees in a written statement:
- The name of the employer and employee.
- The date of the commencement of employment.
- The date of commencement of continuous employment (i.e. taking into account any continuous employment with associated employers).
- Where employment is temporary, the end date.
- Salary payment intervals (e.g. weekly, monthly etc.)
- Notice required to be given by both parties.
- Job title or brief job description.
- If the employment is temporary, the date on which it is expected to end.
- Place of work (or, if there are various places of work, the address of the employer).
- Any collective agreements directly affecting the employment (these will have been concluded with a trade union).
- Hours of work.
- Terms relating to holidays and holiday pay.
- Terms relating to sickness and sick pay.
- Terms relating to pension schemes.
- Disciplinary and grievance policies and procedures, including rights to appeal.
Work outside the UK where this will last for more than a month needs to be dealt with as well:
- Period of work outside the UK.
- Currency for pay.
- Any additional payments or benefits being provided.
- Terms and conditions relating to the work outside the UK.
Any changes to the initial details must be notified to the employee within 1 month.
All the required information can be included in one document such as an appointment letter or employment contract, whilst the disciplinary and grievance procedures can be located elsewhere (such as a staff handbook), but should be referred to in the contract.
Most employers include the written particulars of employment in employment contracts. This enables any additional terms to be included and is more practical as it keeps everything in one place.
Springhouse Law can provide employers with all the employment documents they need, expertly drafted, for a fixed fee. Contact us now to see how we can help, or find out more.
Enforcement
An employment tribunal can award between 2 and 4 weeks’ capped pay for failure to provide these written particulars of employment and can either step in and say what the written particulars are or, compel an employer to provide the particulars.








