Your Employment Contract Explained: UK Guide (2026)

Changing rules: The Employment Rights Act 2025 is being phased in across 2026 and 2027, so some contract terms your employer wrote a year ago may already be out of date. Your written statement of employment particulars must still be given to you on or before your first day.At a glance

• Your employer must give you a written statement of particulars — the legal core of your contract — on or before your first working day.
• A contract exists the moment you accept an offer, even verbally. The paperwork records it; it doesn't create it.
• Notice periods work both ways, but statutory minimums are a floor your employer cannot go below.
• Probation periods don't remove your legal rights — they usually just shorten notice.
• Restrictive covenants (non-compete, non-solicit) are only enforceable if they're genuinely reasonable in scope and length.
• Not legal advice: This article explains the rules in plain English. For your specific situation, speak to an employment solicitor, ACAS, or Citizens Advice.

Almost nobody reads their employment contract properly. You get it in a bundle of onboarding paperwork on your first morning, alongside a pension form and a fire safety leaflet, and you sign it because signing it is clearly what you're meant to do.

Then, two or three years later, something happens. You want to leave and take a client with you. Your employer changes your hours. You're put on garden leave. Suddenly that document matters enormously — and you're reading it for the first time under pressure.

This guide walks through what each part of a UK employment contract actually says, in plain English, so you can read yours calmly and know which clauses genuinely bind you.

What counts as your "contract"

A common misunderstanding: the signed document isn't the whole contract. Your contract of employment is made up of several things.

• The written statement of particulars. A legal requirement. It must be given to you on or before your first day and must cover pay, hours, holiday, place of work, notice, job title, and probation.
• Express terms. Anything specifically agreed — in the document, in your offer letter, or even verbally in an interview.
• Implied terms. Things so obvious they don't need writing down, such as mutual trust and confidence, and your duty to work with reasonable care.
• Incorporated documents. Staff handbooks, policies, or collective agreements referred to in the contract. Whether these are contractual or just guidance matters a great deal — check the wording.

If your handbook is described as "non-contractual", your employer can change it without your agreement. If it isn't, they may not be able to.

Job title and duties

Look for a phrase like "and such other duties as the Company may reasonably require". This is a flexibility clause. It's normal, and it's legitimate, but it's also the clause an employer will point to if your role quietly expands.

The word doing the work is reasonably. A flexibility clause doesn't let an employer redeploy you into a materially different or lesser job without your agreement.

Pay, and what's actually guaranteed

Separate the guaranteed from the discretionary. These are not the same thing, even when they arrive in the same bank transfer.

• Basic salary — guaranteed, and can only be changed by agreement.
• Contractual bonus — if the contract sets out a formula or criteria you can meet, you have a real entitlement.
• Discretionary bonus — the employer decides. Even so, that discretion must be exercised rationally, not capriciously.
• Commission — check what happens to commission earned but unpaid when you leave. Many contracts quietly say you forfeit it.

Also check for a deductions clause allowing your employer to recover training costs, overpayments, or a season ticket loan from your final pay. Without a written clause, most deductions are unlawful.

Hours, overtime and place of work

Your contract should state your normal hours. Watch for three things:

1. A 48-hour opt-out. The Working Time Regulations cap the average working week at 48 hours. You can opt out, but it must be voluntary and you can opt back in with notice.
2. Unpaid overtime wording. Phrases like "such hours as are necessary to fulfil your duties" mean extra hours are unpaid unless stated otherwise.
3. A mobility clause. This allows your employer to move your place of work. A wide one ("anywhere in the UK") is harder to enforce than a narrow, specific one.

Not sure what your contract actually commits you to? Upload it to Clarify and ask in plain English — "what's my notice period?", "can they change my hours?", "is this non-compete enforceable?" You get answers with the exact clause quoted back to you, so you can see where each answer came from.

Try Clarify free → getclarify.co.uk

Holiday, sick pay and other leave

Almost all workers are entitled to 5.6 weeks' paid holiday a year — 28 days for someone working five days a week. Your employer can include bank holidays in that figure, so "20 days plus bank holidays" and "28 days inclusive" are the same statutory minimum described two ways.

On sickness, the key question is whether you get contractual sick pay or only Statutory Sick Pay. If the contract is silent, assume SSP only. Check the qualifying period and how long enhanced pay lasts.

Probation periods

A probation period is a contractual arrangement, not a legal status. During it you keep your statutory rights — including protection from discrimination and from automatically unfair dismissal — from day one.

What probation usually changes is practical: a shorter notice period, restricted access to enhanced sick pay, and a simpler internal process. Check whether your employer can extend probation unilaterally, and by how long.

Notice periods

Notice runs in both directions, and the statutory minimum is a floor.

• From you to your employer: at least one week once you've been employed a month.
• From your employer to you: one week per complete year of service, up to a maximum of 12 weeks.

Your contract can offer more than this, and often does for senior roles. It cannot offer less.

Two related clauses matter here. PILON (payment in lieu of notice) lets your employer pay you out instead of working your notice. Garden leave keeps you employed but away from the workplace — still paid, still bound by your duties, and usually unable to start elsewhere.

Restrictive covenants

These are the post-employment clauses, and they're the ones people worry about most.

• Non-compete — stops you working for a competitor for a period after leaving.
• Non-solicitation — stops you approaching clients or customers.
• Non-dealing — stops you dealing with them even if they approach you.
• Non-poaching — stops you recruiting former colleagues.

A restrictive covenant is only enforceable if it protects a legitimate business interest and goes no further than reasonably necessary. Courts look at duration, geography, and how senior you were. A six-month non-solicit for a sales director is far more likely to hold than a two-year UK-wide non-compete for a junior administrator.

The practical point: an unenforceable covenant can still be expensive and stressful to argue about. Read them before you sign, not after you resign.

Intellectual property and confidentiality

Most contracts assign to your employer anything you create in the course of your employment. If you have a side project, look for a carve-out — and if there isn't one, ask for it in writing before you start.

Confidentiality clauses are normal. What they cannot do is stop you making a protected disclosure — whistleblowing about wrongdoing is protected by law regardless of what your contract says.

What to do next

1. Find your written statement and any handbook it refers to. You need both.
2. Highlight every clause about money leaving your pocket: deductions, clawbacks, training costs, forfeited commission.
3. Note your notice period in both directions and diarise the date your probation ends.
4. Read the restrictive covenants and ask honestly whether you could live with them.
5. If something looks wrong, raise it in writing early. Contracts are easiest to change before you start.

Have a new offer to compare against your current terms? Upload both contracts to Clarify and ask what's changed — notice, bonus structure, covenants, holiday. Every answer comes back cited to the wording it came from, so nothing gets lost between two long documents.

Compare your contracts with Clarify → getclarify.co.uk

Frequently asked questions

Do I have a contract if I never signed anything?

Yes. A contract of employment exists as soon as you accept an offer and start work, even if nothing was signed. Your employer is separately required to give you a written statement of particulars, and failing to do so can lead to compensation at tribunal.

Can my employer change my contract without asking me?

Generally no. Changing a contractual term normally needs your agreement. Employers sometimes rely on a variation clause, but courts read those narrowly. Imposing a change unilaterally can amount to a breach of contract.

Is my probation period a trial where I have no rights?

No. You keep statutory rights from day one, including protection from discrimination, the right to be paid at least the minimum wage, and holiday accrual. Probation mainly affects notice length and access to some contractual benefits.

How much notice do I actually have to give?

Whatever your contract says, subject to a statutory minimum of one week once you've been employed for a month. If your contract is silent, "reasonable notice" applies, which for most roles means at least the statutory minimum.

Can my employer stop me working for a competitor?

Only through a valid restrictive covenant, and only where it protects a legitimate business interest and is reasonable in length and scope. Very broad non-competes are frequently unenforceable, but you may still need advice to argue that.

What is garden leave and am I still paid?

Garden leave means you remain employed during your notice but are asked not to attend work. You continue to be paid and remain bound by your contractual duties, including confidentiality and, usually, not working elsewhere.

Can my employer deduct training costs from my final pay?

Only if there is a clear written clause allowing it that you agreed to. Even then, the amount must be a genuine estimate of the employer's loss rather than a penalty, and it should typically reduce over time.

What if my contract contradicts the staff handbook?

Check whether the handbook is described as contractual. If it isn't, the contract normally takes priority. If it is, the two are read together, and any genuine ambiguity is often interpreted against the party that drafted it — usually the employer.

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• How to Read a Freelance Contract Before You Sign It (UK 2026)
• What "Inside" or "Outside IR35" Really Means on Your Contract (UK 2026)

This article is general information only and is not legal or financial advice. Employment law changes and individual circumstances vary. For advice on your own situation, speak to an employment solicitor, contact ACAS, or visit Citizens Advice.