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Employment Contract Support
Get UK hiring right from the start. Goodwille helps overseas businesses put the correct employment contracts in place to avoid risk.
How Employment Contracts Protect You From Risk
As soon as a candidate accepts your job offer, a contract of employment is created – even if nothing has been written down. Setting the terms clearly in writing is essential to reduce the risk of misunderstandings or disputes and to ensure your business meets its legal obligations from the outset.
Is it a Legal Requirement to Provide a Written Employment Contract?
Many employers think they must provide a full employment contract by the employee’s first day, but the requirement is actually to provide a written statement of employment particulars (under the Employment Rights Act). This document is split into two parts:
The principal statement, which needs to be given on or before the employee’s first day of work
The wider written statement, which needs to be provided within two months of their start date
While the written statement covers the essentials like the job description, notice period, and working hours, a full employment contract gives your business much broader protection. It allows you to include additional clauses covering confidentiality, intellectual property, and other important protections that may not be included within the written statement alone.
Can You Use Foreign Employment Contracts in the UK?
We often see international businesses using foreign employment contracts for UK employees, which can leave important legal protections missing for both the employer and employee.
Employment law varies widely between the UK and other countries, including EU states. Contracts drafted for another jurisdiction may not include the clauses or statutory terms required under UK law, leaving your business exposed if issues arise later on.
Learn more about your responsibilities as a UK employer.
Knowing Which Type of Employment Contract You Need
Before drafting a contract, it’s important to understand the individual’s employment status. Anyone working under an employment contract is classified as an employee, but your business may also engage workers or self-employed contractors, who have different rights.
We help businesses like yours figure out exactly which contracts you need, so you stay fully compliant with UK law and avoid fines.
Types of Employment Contracts
We can help you create the right contract for your business and workforce, including:
Permanent contracts — for full-time or part-time employees
Fixed-term contracts — for temporary roles or project-based work
Casual or zero-hour contracts — for flexible working arrangements where hours are not guaranteed (usually applies to workers, not employees).
Employment Contract Advice Services for Employers
We provide specialist support to help you get your employment contracts right first time, including:
Employment Contract Reviews
Identify gaps, risks, and outdated clauses that could leave your business exposed.
Advice on Contract Types
Get clear guidance on whether you need employee, worker, or contractor agreements.
Drafting Employment Contracts
Operating in the UK for the first time? Our specialists draft contracts that meet UK legal requirements and protect your business interests.
Written Statement of Employment Particulars Reviews
We ensure your written statement includes everything it needs to from a legal standpoint, and help you understand exactly when and how it needs to be provided to UK employees.
Dispute Prevention
If you’ve experienced workplace issues or disputes, we help you strengthen your documentation so the same problems don’t happen again.
Writing Staff Handbooks
We ensure your written statement includes everything it needs to from a legal standpoint, and help you understand exactly when and how it needs to be provided to UK employees.
Why Choose Goodwille for Employment Contract Advice?
Set your business up for success with Goodwille. With experience supporting over 2,000 international clients operating in the UK, we’ll bridge the gap between your country’s culture and the UK.
Reduce Spend and Risk
Avoid the time, cost, and compliance risks of setting up HR processes on your own and access all the essential employment contract and HR support in one place.
Pay Only for What You Need
Our customisable service packages ensure you only invest in the support that matters to your business.
Full Support for Your UK Expansion
From setting up a UK entity and managing corporate governance to handling finance, HR, and compliance, we’re here to support you at every stage of your UK expansion.
Let’s talk about your business plans, and how we can ensure your success in this new market.
Employment Contract Support FAQ’s
What are collective agreements?
Collective agreements are arrangements negotiated between employers and employee representatives, such as trade unions, covering terms and conditions of employment. These agreements can set out standard terms such as pay, working hours, and benefits, and may apply to groups of employees rather than individuals.
What should be included in a UK employment contract?
A UK employment contract should clearly set out the employment terms, including key details such as rights, responsibilities, and duties.
These typically include sick pay, paid leave, start and end date, job title, and holiday entitlement. Employers may also include additional protections such as restrictive covenants and other certain clauses to safeguard the business.
Because contract terms can vary depending on the role and business needs, it is always advisable to seek legal advice to ensure compliance and full protection.
Do employees have to sign an employment contract?
Employees are not always legally required to sign an employment contract for it to be valid. However, they should receive written terms of employment, and signing the contract is best practice as it confirms agreement to the terms and reduces the risk of future disputes.
Can an employer withdraw a signed job offer or employment contract?
Whether an employer can withdraw a job offer depends on the type of offer made. A conditional offer can usually be withdrawn if the conditions are not met, such as unsatisfactory references or pre-employment checks. If all conditions have been met, withdrawing the offer may constitute a breach of contract.
With an unconditional offer, the employment contract is already in place, so the employer would need to terminate the contract properly by giving notice and following contractual terms.
When should an employment contract be issued?
Technically, a contract of employment is formed as soon as a job offer is accepted – even if it’s not written down. However, as part of the recruitment process, the written statement of employment particulars must be provided on or before the employee’s first day of work.
While it is not a strict legal requirement for the full employment contract to be signed by this point, it is strongly recommended to have it in place by day one to protect your business and ensure expectations are clearly agreed from the outset.
What is the difference between statutory and contractual notice periods?
Statutory notice is the legal minimum notice an employer must give an employee, based on length of service. Contractual notice is the notice period set out in the employment contract. Employers can give more notice than the statutory minimum, but they cannot give less than the statutory requirement.
When should you consider outsourcing employment contract support?
Outsourcing employment contract support is particularly valuable when your business grows, when you need access to specific skills in employment law and HR compliance, or when you want support without building an in-house HR function. It ensures your contracts remain compliant and fit for purpose as your business develops.
Why is a contract of employment important for employers?
A contract of employment is important because it forms a legally binding agreement that defines the employment relationship between an employer and employee.
What is an employment contract?
An employee contract is an agreement between an employer and employee that sets out the terms of employment.
Meet Our HR Manager
Jacqui Brown
As our HR Manager, Jacqui provides high quality and compliant HR advice across the full spectrum of HR services for a portfolio of Goodwille clients. She offers pragmatic advice on technical matters relating to HR issues including employee relations, organisation design, policies and procedures, implementation of new contracts and staff handbooks, benefits and salary levels, recruitment and training solutions.
What Our Clients Say
Trusted by businesses from all around the world.
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Nothing is too much trouble, Goodwille are our local UK Finance, HR and Administrative function enabling us to focus on doing our day jobs. We have a great relationship, but it is unobtrusive: we engage when needed, otherwise things just tick over. I have had direct engagement for the last two years as local GM. My organisation used them for at least a year prior to that.
-L
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We have been working with Goodwille for the past 3 years, only amazing experiences. They help startups and scaleups that we bring from Nordic countries with their expansion to the UK market. All experts working at Goodwille have a great understanding of advising companies in their market-entry, helping them with every step along the way. We would recommend their services to anyone who needs a trusted partner in the UK market.
-ED
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We have worked with Goodwille for over a year and they have assisted us in our UK launch. They are a valued and trusted partner with a can-do attitude and I would recommend them to any company looking to establish a company the UK market. As well as assisting with local issues Goodwille have excellent structures in place and work seamlessly with our Swedish head office.
-SH
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As an overseas CFO it is essential to work with a partner which understands the UK perspective as it relates to the Nordics. I am very pleased to work with Goodwille.
-IS