Creating an Effective Part-Time Employment Contract: A Full Guide

What Is a Part-Time Employment Contract?

Part-Time Employment Contracts: The Introduction
Employment contracts play a very important role for both the employer and employee. They provide guidance on how the relationship between the two will operate and can also help avoid disputes. In particular, for part-time employees, there are specific areas of the contract that must be addressed. In general, a part time employment contract is not significantly different from a full time employment contract. However, because part-time employment contracts deal with fewer hours of work than full time employment contracts, some issues that may not be clear in a full time employment context could become problematic in a part-time employment contract. In particular, a key area of concern in structuring a part-time employment contract is whether the duties assigned under that contract really make sense considering the hours to be worked.
Like all employment contracts, part-time employment contracts should deal with wages/salary, vacation, bonuses, benefits and termination. Employers that fail to have written contracts place themselves in a bad position if issues later arise. Employers should consult with legal counsel to develop appropriate employment contracts not only to protect against potential liability , but also to protect the time and resources of their experienced employees who are assigned the duty of creating and maintaining these contracts. Employees should also consult legal counsel to create their employment contracts. Employees should remember that they are entering into an agreement that is legally binding, and while they may trust their employer, their entire livelihood may be determined by the terms of a contract they sign today. Therefore, it is likely in the interest of employees to have an employment contract drafted or reviewed by legal counsel.
This section of the blog post is a brief introduction to part-time employment contracts. However, each subject heading of this post is a substantial, complex issue that impacts the creation of an appropriate part-time employment contract. Therefore, this post will explore in detail the employment contract issues that are unique to part-time employees, identify potential employer liabilities and other issues that may arise in the drafting of employment contracts for part-time employees.

Key Features of a Part-Time Employment Contract

Whether you are hiring your first part-time employee or adding them to an existing workforce, a comprehensive contract is vital to outlining specific provisions of that employment relationship. The following sections are essential for any such agreement, though the particular details will vary according to each employer’s specific needs and the circumstances of the employment. As with any employment contract, it is important to clearly articulate the job title and responsibilities of the position. This is particularly crucial with part-time employees who may be expected to take on multiple roles or to perform different tasks on different days. Clarifying the position’s duties in the contract protects both the employer and the employee by managing expectations early in the employment relationship. The working hours for part-time employees should also be clearly defined. If possible, the employer should specify the location of performing the work as well, whether that will be at a workplace or remotely. When signing a contract, the employee should be prepared to accurately measure their time spent on the job by clocking in and out for shifts, along with tracking their actual hours worked for the pay period. There are a variety of options for this, including timekeeping apps for smartphones, but employers should familiarize themselves with the Family and Medical Leave Act (FMLA) requirements and other wage and hour laws that apply to this practice. Beyond verifying the actual hours worked, the contract should define the employee’s pay rate and its frequency, whether that be hourly, bi-weekly or monthly. The pay schedule and method of payment should also be detailed in the agreement. As noted above, some employers elect to pay for certain items—transportation, equipment, meals, etc.—rather than pay a higher rate up front. Finally, it is essential to outline the employee termination conditions in the contract. This includes questions of whether the employment will be paid or unpaid, whether certain notice periods will be required, and the extent to which severance pay may apply. This section of the contract should also address additional termination-related topics, such as intellectual property, confidentiality and the return of company property.

Legal Requirements for Part-Time Contracts

When drafting a contract for part-time employment in Australia, employers must ensure that they are in compliance with various legal requirements which govern the terms and conditions of the employment relationship both during and after the employment term.
For instance, to avoid non-compliance with the Fair Work Act 2009 (Cth) (FWA), employees and employers must consider how the terms of the employment contract interact with the applicable modern award and enterprise agreement. Further, it is imperative at the outset that the appropriate award and/or enterprise agreement has been identified. This may be done by seeking advice and assistance from an employment lawyer, or through the Fair Work Ombudsman website.
The FWA contains rules and regulations relating various aspects of the employer-employee relationship, including anti-discrimination legislation.
As mentioned above, anti-discrimination policies must be considered in relation to all contracts, including those for part-time employment. For example, the Age Discrimination Act 2004 (Cth) makes it unlawful to discriminate against an employee on the basis of age, including if the employee works less than a ‘full-time’ worker did (such as a part-time worker, or a full-time worker who job-shares). Such discrimination may occur both in the recruitment process and through unfair practices that disadvantage them in the workplace on the basis of their age.
To avoid non-compliance with this, the Australian Human Rights Commission (AHRC) recommends that an obvious link exists between the selection criteria and the inherent requirements of the job. For example, it may be necessary to show that the employee is required to drive as part of their duties and is not licenced to do so. In this scenario, the requirement to be licenced would then be linked to the inherent requirements of the job.
Importantly, part-time employees are entitled the same benefits and conditions accrued by full-time workers (i.e. base hourly rate, place of work, hours of work, redundancy obligations and confidentiality requirements), in addition to their pro-rata entitlements.
Part time employees with service of 12 months or more who have worked for an employer who has undergone a relevant business system change within the previous 3 months (such as a merger) are entitled to a redundancy payment if they are outplaced and cannot return to their substantive role.

Tailoring the Contract for Specific Industries

Customizing the Contract for Different Industries
Part-time employment contracts may need to be tailored for specific industries. For example, while the retail sector is more likely to include a clause prohibiting employees from stealing customers for their own profit, a contractor working in residential or commercial construction might have more reason to be concerned with a non-circumvent clause. In the education sector, clauses revolving around parental contact and proper care of students are more common than in other sectors. Such clauses could include prohibitions on discussing internal matters with parents or allowing them to go unescorted into the classroom. If you work in a sector where your employees have access to potentially sensitive information about customers, clients or students, it may be worth including an additional clause outlining how that information can be used. Non-competition clauses may also need to be adjusted based on your industry. In industries where many companies are offering similar products/services within a relatively small market area, a clause preventing your employee from working for a competitor in a defined geographic area may be beneficial to you.

Part-Time Employment Contract Examples

There are several places online that offer editable part-time employment contract templates. These templates are designed to be modified for specific circumstances based on the needs of a particular business, but the format and language tend to be relatively standard, even across different companies and industries. Once you find a suitable template, it can be saved to your computer, opened with a word processor program like Microsoft Word, and modified as needed. It is recommended that someone looking to hire a part-time employee consult with an employment lawyer after modifying their part-time employment contract so that they can be sure all the necessary adjustments have been made and that the contract is appropriate for their state, territory, region or country’s laws.
One such example of a part-time employment contract template can be found here: http://uk.practicallaw.thomsonreuters.com/5-502-2444?navId=Z05d7b764&firstPage=true&transitionType=Default&context= This contract is offered as a free download under the general Creative Commons license. The contract contains clear spaces to fill in all of the relevant information such as the employer and employee contact and personal information, job details like wages, hours and duties, and additional sections that outline leave allowances, restrictions on the use of company property and how the contract can be terminated, among many other useful details. The "—" marks in brackets indicate where text needs to be filled in, or in some cases replaced entirely , so it is a good idea to download an unfilled copy of the contract to your computer before 1) filling it in and 2) converting it to the final version you will save. The process is as simple as visiting the link and downloading the contract as a .PDF or .DOCX file. Open the contract in Word or other word processing program and modify it per your needs. Finally, convert it to a .PDF or .DOCX file or print out to PDF format. Save the completed document to your computer and email a copy to your lawyer, if needed, for approval before presenting to the employee.
Another example can be found here: http://www.businessforms.org/Part_Supplemental_07.htm This site offers sample part-time employment contracts that are downloadable and fillable on your own computer. The contracts contain all the necessary text and may be sufficient for companies that only hire part-time employees occasionally or that only hire part-time employees for simple, straightforward work. For most companies, however, using the contract from the above example or from another employment contract site will save time and energy and also provide unmatched legal quality. Both of the above example contracts contain clearly defined leave allowances and guidelines for use of official company equipment that can protect your business from legal or financial liability. The examples also include provisions for the transfer of property, rights and patents resulting from work done by the employee while employed by your company.

Common Contract Drafting Mistakes

One of the most common mistakes is using a ‘cut and paste’ type of employment contract. If you are getting your employment contracts from a source other than a lawyer or labour relations consultant, the chances are that they are not suitable and may contain ambiguities as to the work to be performed. Not to mention, the contracts are rarely prepared with your benefit and the future in mind. Fairly obvious, but well worth mentioning, a contract that is written for a full-time employee does not make a good part-time contract, obviously.
A second very common error is forgetting to change pieces of legislation that are referred to in the contract. For example, if the contract states that the employee is entitled to two weeks’ vacation after working for one year, but then says in another section that the contract is governed by the Ontario Employment Standards Act, it should be noted that there are no vacation rights under the Ontario Employment Standards Act (OSA) for part-year employees – i.e. those who work a fraction of the year to fill in during busy periods, like summer students or interns. Therefore, it is suggested that the wording for vacation entitlement in the contract does not refer to the OSA.
Another big mistake is failing to specify whether the company is going to provide benefits such as medical, dental or licensing fees. Sometimes, it is just the state of things that a part-time employee is assumed to not receive any benefits. If you are going to pay for certain types of benefits, the contract should state what they are, but know that there will be an obligation to pay these in a discrimination context. For example, the employer must justify why it is providing some kinds of benefits to part-time employees but not others.
One common mistake employers make is not circulating an employee handbook at the same time as or prior to – or better, together with – an employment contract. If the employer fails to refer to an applicable handbook in the contract, the employee may not receive, or be bound by, the terms therein. But if the contract refers to the use of an employee handbook and the employee has not received it, this could cause liability for the company.
How many times have employers failed to implement a new contract on a proper start date? Even where there is a signed employment contract, it is invalid if it has not started. Accordingly, a signed and executed contract is just a piece of paper without a start date. If the employee starts on, say Sept. 28, the contract saying employment is due to begin on Sept. 28 is binding however, it is essential that the contract be issued before, or on, the employee’s first day, if possible.
Is the salary stated in the employment contract actual or gross? Is there a bonus attached? Are there guarantees for promotion? All these questions must be answered with candour and care.
There are many other mistakes that can be made with part-time employment contracts however, a lawyer will help you navigate the perils and guide you through the changes that need to be made.

Hiring a Lawyer for Contract Creation

Employers should consider the benefits of consulting a legal professional. An employment attorney will have extensive experience writing a variety of contracts and will know what should and should not be included. The attorney will be well-versed on laws that may affect the part-time employment relationship as well, so the part-time contract created will be compliant with all relevant laws. Additionally, an attorney can help you read, understand, and adapt any state-specific or industry-specific laws regarding part-time employees or contracts so that your contract is both specific to your unique part-time employment relationship as well as to your jurisdiction and industry.

Conclusion: Strategies for Part-Time Contracts

This guide to creating a part-time employment contract has covered a wide range of need-to-know information for employers in Massachusetts. By following these steps and best practices, you’ll be more likely to avoid potential legal issues and create effective, enforceable contracts.
To sum up:

A part-time employment contract should start with the employee’s title, role, and a succinct explanation of the terms of part-time employment.
Be clear that the contract represents the entire agreement between the employee and the employer; no other written or oral agreements should apply.
Include either a clause allowing the employer to terminate the contract at will or a clause that lays out the process for termination, whether by employer or employee .
The employer should include a broad indemnification clause to protect itself if the employee is operating his/her own business through the employer.
Clearly list the benefits that the employee is entitled to, including PTO/sick time, family leave, and healthcare.
Include a confidential information provision that requires the employee to respect any proprietary information about the employer or its clients.
Finally, make sure that the entire contract is signed and Word-processed.

Following these best practices can help ensure that your employer-employee relationship is both legally secure and well-managed.