Employment Protection (Consolidation) Act 1978

Written particulars of terms of employment E+W+S

1 Written particulars of terms of employment. E+W+S

(1) Not later than thirteen weeks after [F1 the beginning of an employee’s employment] with an employer, the employer shall give to the employee a written statement in accordance with the following provisions of this section.

(2) An employer shall in a statement under this section—

(a) identify the parties;

(b) specify the date when the employment began;

[F2 (c) specify the date on which the employee’s period of continuous employment began (taking into account any employment with a previous employer which counts towards that period).]

(3) A statement under this section shall contain the following particulars of the terms of employment as at a specified date not more than one week before the statement is given, that is to say—

(a) the scale or rate of remuneration, or the method of calculating remuneration,

(b) the intervals at which remuneration is paid (that is, whether weekly or monthly or by some other period),

(c) any terms and conditions relating to hours of work (including any terms and conditions relating to normal working hours),

(d) any terms and conditions relating to—

(i) entitlement to holidays, including public holidays, and holiday pay (the particulars given being sufficient to enable the employee’s entitlement, including any entitlement to accrued holiday pay on the termination of employment, to be precisely calculated),

(ii) incapacity for work due to sickness or injury, including any provision for sick pay,

(iii) pensions and pension schemes,

(e) the length of notice which the employee is obliged to give and entitled to receive to determine his contract of employment, and

(f) the title of the job which the employee is employed to do:

Provided that paragraph (d)(iii) shall not apply to the employees of any body or authority if the employees’ pension rights depend on the terms of a pension scheme established under any provision contained in or having effect under an Act of Parliament and the body or authority are required by any such provision to give to new employees information concerning their pension rights, or concerning the determination of questions affecting their pension rights.

(4) Subject to subsection (5) [F3 and section 2A(1)], every statement given to an employee under this section shall include a note—

(a) specifying any disciplinary rules applicable to the employee, or referring to a document which is reasonably accessible to the employee and which specifies such rules;

(b) specifying, by description or otherwise—

(i) a person to whom the employee can apply if he is dissatisfied with any disciplinary decision relating to him; and

(ii) a person to whom the employee can apply for the purpose of seeking redress of any grievance relating to his employment,

and the manner in which any such application should be made;

(c) where there are further steps consequent upon any such application, explaining those steps or referring to a document which is reasonably accessible to the employee and which explains them; and

(d) stating whether a contracting-out certificate is in force for the employment in respect of which the statement is given.

(5) The provisions of paragraphs (a) to (c) of subsection (4) shall not apply to rules, disciplinary decisions, grievances or procedures relating to health or safety at work.

(6) The definition of week given by section 153(1) does not apply for the purposes of this section.

Textual Amendments

F1 Words substituted with saving by Employment Act 1982 (c.46, SIF 43:5), s. 20, Sch. 2 para. 8(1)(a)

F2 S. 1(2)(c) substituted with saving by Employment Act 1982 (c.46, SIF 43:5), s. 20, Sch. 2 para. 8(1)(b)

F3 Words inserted by Employment Act 1989 (c. 38, SIF 43:1), s. 29(3), Sch. 6 para. 18, Sch. 9 para. 4(1)

Modifications etc. (not altering text)

C1 S. 1 modified by Dock Work Act 1989 (c. 13, SIF 43:1), s. 6(2)

2 Supplementary provisions relating to statements under s. 1. E+W+S

(1) If there are no particulars to be entered under any of the heads of paragraph (d) of subsection (3) of section 1, or under any of the other provisions of section 1(2) and (3), that fact shall be stated.

(2) If the contract is for a fixed term, the statement given under section 1 shall state the date when the contract expires.

(3) A statement given under section 1 may, for all or any of the particulars to be given by the statement, refer the employee to some document which the employee has reasonable opportunities of reading in the course of his employment or which is made reasonably accessible to him in some other way.

[F4 (4) No statement need be given under section 1 where—

(a) the employee’s employment began not more than six months after the end of earlier employment with the same employer,

(b) a statement under that section, and any information subsequently required under section 4, was duly given to the employee in respect of his earlier employment, and

(c) the terms of his present employment are the same as those of his earlier employment and any other matters falling within section 1(4) of which particulars were to be given by that statement are also unchanged,

but without prejudice to the operation of subsection (1) of section 4 if there is subsequently a change in his terms of employment or in any of those matters.]

Textual Amendments

F4 S. 2(4) substituted (subject to a saving in S.I. 1990/189, art. 3) by Employment Act 1989 (c. 38, SIF 43:1), s. 13(2), Sch. 9 para. 4(1)

[F5 2A Particulars of disciplinary procedures not required where less than 20 employees. E+W+S

(1) The note which, by virtue of subsection (4) of section 1, is required to be included in a statement given to an employee under that section need not comply with the following provisions of that subsection, namely—

(a) paragraph (a),

(b) in paragraph (b), sub-paragraph (i) and the words following sub-paragraph (ii) so far as relating to sub-paragraph (i), and

(c) paragraph (c),

if on the date when the employee’s employment began the relevant number of employees was less than twenty.

(2) In subsection (1) “the relevant number of employees”, in relation to an employee, means the number of employees employed by his employer added to the number of employees employed by any associated employer.]

Textual Amendments

F5 S. 2A inserted (subject to a saving in S.I. 1990/189, art. 3) by Employment Act 1989 (c. 38, SIF 43:1), s. 13(3), Sch. 9 para. 4(1)

3 F6 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . E+W+S

Textual Amendments

F6 Ss. 3, 7 repealed by Employment Act 1982 (c. 46, SIF 43:5), Sch. 4

4 Changes in terms of employment. E+W+S

(1) If after the date to which a statement given under section 1 relates there is a change in the terms of employment to be included, or referred to, in that statement the employer shall, not more than one month after the change, inform the employee of the nature of the change by a written statement and, if he does not leave a copy of the statement with the employee, shall preserve the statement and ensure that the employee has reasonable opportunities of reading it in the course of his employment, or that it is made reasonably accessible to him in some other way.

(2) A statement given under subsection (1) may, for all or any of the particulars to be given by the statement, refer the employee to some document which the employee has reasonable opportunities of reading in the course of his employment, or which is made reasonably accessible to him in some other way.

(3) If, in referring in the statement given under section 1 or under subsection (1) of this section to any such document, the employer indicates to the employee that future changes in the terms of which the particulars are given in the document will be entered up in the document (or recorded by some other means for the information of persons referring to the document), the employer need not under subsection (1) inform the employee of any such change if it is duly entered up or recorded not later than one month after the change is made.

(4) Where, after an employer has given to an employee a written statement in accordance with section 1—

(a) the name of the employer (whether an individual or a body corporate or partnership) is changed, without any change in the identity of the employer, or

(b) the identity of the employer is changed, in such circumstances that,. . . F7 the continuity of the employee’s period of employment is not broken,

and (in either case) the change does not involve any change in the terms (other than the names of the parties) included or referred to in the statement, then, the person who, immediately after the change, is the employer shall not be required to give to the employee a statement in accordance with section 1, but, subject to subsection (5), the change shall be treated as a change falling within subsection (1) of this section.

(5) A written statement under this section which informs an employee of such a change in his terms of employment as is referred to in subsection (4)(b) shall specify the date on which the employee’s [F8 period of continuous employment] began.

[F9 (6) Any reference in subsection (1), (3) or (4) to the terms of employment which were to be, or were, included or referred to in a statement given under section 1 shall be construed as including a reference to any other matters falling within section 1(2)(c) and (4) of which particulars were to be given by that statement.]

Textual Amendments

F7 Words repealed with saving by Employment Act 1982 (c.46, SIF 43:5), s. 20, Sch. 2 para. 8(3)(a), Sch. 4

F8 Words substituted with saving by Employment Act 1982 (c.46, SIF 43:5), s. 20, Sch. 2 para. 8(3)(b)

F9 S. 4(6) added by Employment Act 1989 (c. 38, SIF 43:1), s. 13(4), Sch. 9 para. 4(1)

5 Exclusion of certain contracts in writing. E+W+S

[F10 (1)] Sections 1 and 4 shall not apply to an employee if and so long as the following conditions are fulfilled in relation to him, that is to say—

(a) the employee’s contract of employment is a contract which has been reduced to writing in one or more documents and which contains express terms affording the particulars to be given under each of the paragraphs in subsections (3) of section 1, and under each head of paragraph (d) of that subsection;

(b) there has been given to the employee a copy of the contract (with any variations made from time to time), or he has reasonable opportunities of reading such a copy in the course of his employment, or such a copy is made reasonably accessible to him in some other way; and

(c) such a note as is mentioned in section 1(4) has been given to the employee or he has reasonable opportunities of reading such a note in the course of his employment or such a note is made reasonably accessible to him in some other way:

. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . F11

[F12 (2) If on the date when the employee’s employment began the relevant number of employees was less than twenty, any reference in subsection (1)(c) to such a note as is there mentioned shall be construed as including a reference to such a note as is mentioned in section 1(4) as it has effect with the omission of the provisions specified in section 2A(1)(a) to (c).

(3) In subsection (2) “the relevant number of employees” has the meaning given by section 2A(2).]

Textual Amendments

F10 S. 5(1) renumbered from s. 5 by Employment Act 1989 (c. 38, SIF 43:1), ss. 13(5), 29(6), Sch. 9 para. 4(1) (subject to a saving in S.I. 1990/189, art. 3)

F11 S. 5 proviso repealed by Employment Act 1982 (c.46, SIF 43:5), Sch. 4

F12 S. 5(2)(3) added (subject to a saving in S.I. 1990/189, art. 3) by Employment Act 1989 (c. 38, SIF 43:1), ss. 13(5), 29(6), Sch. 9 para. 4(1)

[F13 5A Employees becoming or ceasing to be excluded from ss. 1 to 4. E+W+S

(1) Sections 1 to 4 shall apply to an employee who at any time comes or ceases to come within the exceptions from those sections provided for by section 5, 141, 144, 145 or 146(4) to (7), or under section 149, as if his employment with his employer terminated or began at that time.

(2) Subsection (1) of section 1 shall apply to an employee who ceases to come within the exception provided by section 5 with the substitution for the words “thirteen weeks” of the words “one month”.

(3) The fact that section 1 is directed to apply to an employee as if his employment began on his ceasing to come within one of the exceptions referred to in subsection (1) shall not affect the obligation under subsection (2)(b) of that section to specify the date on which his employment actually began.]

Textual Amendments

F13 S. 5A inserted with saving by Employment Act 1982 (c.46, SIF 43:5), s. 20, Sch. 2 para. 8(4)

6 Power of Secretary of State to require further particulars. E+W+S

The Secretary of State may by order provide that section 1 shall have effect as if such further particulars as may be specified in the order were included in the particulars to be included in a statement under that section, and, for that purpose, the order may include such provisions amending section 1(1), (2) and (3) as appear to the Secretary of State to be expedient.

F14 7 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . E+W+S

Textual Amendments

F14 Ss. 3, 7 repealed by Employment Act 1982 (c. 46, SIF 43:5), Sch. 4