UK law requires employers to provide a written statement of employment particulars to every employee and worker from their first day of work. Failing to do so can result in a 2 to 4 weeks pay award at tribunal, and missing terms can undermine your ability to enforce policies or make disciplinary decisions. The statement must cover 22 specific items — and most small businesses fail to include all of them.
What is a written statement of employment particulars?
Under the Employment Rights Act 1996 (as amended by the Good Work Plan from April 2020), every employee and worker must receive a written statement of employment particulars from day one of employment.
This is sometimes called a "Section 1 statement", an employment contract, or an offer letter with terms attached. Whatever you call it, the law requires it to contain specific information.
You can issue the statement in electronic form — there is no requirement for a signed paper copy — but you must be able to evidence that the worker received it.
The 22 mandatory items (full checklist)
Principal statement (must be a single document, given on day one)
These items must appear in one document — you cannot split them across multiple letters or handbooks:
- [ ] The employer's name and address
- [ ] The employee's name
- [ ] The start date
- [ ] The date on which continuous employment began (may differ from start date if there was a prior contract)
- [ ] Scale or rate of pay, or the method for calculating pay
- [ ] Pay intervals (weekly, monthly, etc.)
- [ ] Hours of work — including normal working hours and the days of the week they will work
- [ ] Whether the hours or days may vary, and if so how
- [ ] Holiday entitlement and holiday pay (sufficient to show entitlement, including public holidays)
- [ ] Any other paid leave entitlement (e.g. sick leave, maternity/paternity leave)
- [ ] Duration of temporary contracts, or the end date of a fixed-term contract
- [ ] Place of work (or confirmation the employee works at various locations)
- [ ] Job title or a brief job description
- [ ] Whether the employee may be required to work outside the UK for more than a month — and if so, the conditions
Additional mandatory terms (can be separate documents, within 2 months)
These can be covered in a staff handbook or a separate policies document:
- [ ] Sick pay entitlement and sick pay procedures
- [ ] Notice periods (both employer and employee)
- [ ] Pension scheme details
- [ ] Collective agreements (if any)
- [ ] Training entitlement (whether compulsory or not, and who pays)
- [ ] Disciplinary rules and procedures
- [ ] Grievance procedure (including who to raise it with)
- [ ] Right to appeal disciplinary decisions
What to include beyond the legal minimum
The mandatory items are a floor, not a ceiling. A well-drafted contract also includes:
Confidentiality clause. Protects customer data, pricing, and business strategy. Without this, an employee who leaves and takes client data has not necessarily breached their contract.
Garden leave. Allows you to keep an employee on pay but off-site during their notice period — preventing them from using their remaining time to poach clients or staff.
Post-termination restrictions. Non-solicitation and non-dealing clauses to protect customer and supplier relationships after the employee leaves. These must be reasonable in scope, duration, and geography to be enforceable.
Intellectual property clause. Confirms work created during employment belongs to the employer.
Right to deduct from final pay. Without a specific clause, deductions from final pay (e.g. for holiday taken in advance) may be unlawful.
Common mistakes
Not updating contracts when the role changes. If you promote someone or materially change their hours or pay, issue an updated statement. Outdated contracts cause ambiguity in disciplinary and redundancy situations.
Referencing a handbook that does not exist. Many employers incorporate policies by reference. If the handbook is not available or is out of date, the reference is meaningless and the policies may not be enforceable.
Vague hours clauses. "Hours as required by the business" with no further detail may not satisfy the statutory requirement to state hours of work. Be specific.
Not issuing contracts to workers. Since April 2020, workers (not just employees) are entitled to a principal statement from day one. This includes casual and zero hours workers.
No written acknowledgement. You cannot prove the contract was issued without some evidence of delivery — an email read receipt, a signed copy, or a record in an HR system.
Storing and retrieving employment contracts
KornerIQ stores employment contracts and written statements in the employee documents module — searchable by name and date, with automatic retention tracking. If a worker raises a grievance or an ex-employee brings a tribunal claim, the contract is retrievable in seconds.
Frequently asked questions
Does a verbal job offer count as an employment contract? A verbal offer accepted by the employee is technically a binding contract. However, without a written statement, you cannot prove what was agreed on pay, hours, or notice. Always issue a written statement from day one.
What if I issued a contract years ago and things have changed? Issue a written notification of the changes within one month of the change taking effect. You do not need to reissue the entire contract — a letter confirming the updated terms is sufficient, but it must be signed or acknowledged.
Can I use a template contract from the internet? You can use templates as a starting point, but a generic template may not cover your specific industry, working patterns, or post-termination restrictions. Have a solicitor or HR adviser review it before use.
What is the penalty for not providing a written statement? At an employment tribunal, a worker can claim 2 to 4 weeks pay (capped at the statutory weekly pay cap, currently £643) for failure to provide a written statement. If the worker brings a substantive claim (e.g. unfair dismissal), the failure to issue a contract may increase the award by up to 25%.
Does a zero hours worker need a written statement? Yes. Since April 2020, workers on zero hours contracts are entitled to a principal statement from day one. The statement should reflect the irregular nature of their hours but must still include all required information.