Contracts

Our contract checklist

We believe that the nursing workforce should be recognised and valued through fair pay, terms and conditions (Standard 4 RCN Nursing Workforce Standards).

If you work outside of the NHS, please also see our Employment Standards for Independent Health and Social Care Sectors. These set out what we expect employers in these settings to deliver for the nursing workforce.

A contract is a legally binding document. You should always read any contract fully and make sure you understand it before you sign it. If there is anything on the contract that you know to be incorrect, ask the employer to correct it, and only sign the corrected copy.

If you work without sight of or reading your contract, it will be implied that you have accepted the terms of the contract. This contract checklist may help you evaluate the contents of a new contract before committing yourself.

You may get a conditional offer subject to employment checks and references. A contract starts as soon as a job offer is accepted. Accepting an offer of employment on the terms specified and then starting work is generally seen as proof that you accept the terms and conditions offered by the employer.

Always be clear on (and ensure you are happy with) the terms and conditions before you accept the offer. Our contract checklist may help.

Terms and conditions set out the rights and responsibilities of you and your employer. These terms fall into four general categories, explained by ACAS. Please see Labour Relations Agency (LRA) for information in Northern Ireland.

Employment contracts do not have to be in writing to be legally valid.

A contract between employer and employee will still exist and can be orally agreed. However, we would encourage you to request a written contract as soon as possible. It is better to have proof of your agreement with your employer. Written contracts are also important if changes or variations to the contract have to be negotiated at a later date. Please also see below for your rights to a 'written statement of particulars'.

Whether you are classed as an employee or a worker, from 6 April 2020 your employer must give you a written statement of particulars from day one.

Your particulars should explain your pay, working hours, holiday entitlement, job location and other rights and responsibilities. This applies to both employees and workers. The written particulars are not in themselves a contract of employment but will include your main conditions of employment. Most employers convert this into a written contract. Check the written statement carefully and discuss any issues with your employer.

Written statement of particulars for contracts that started prior to 6 April 2020

If you are classed as an employee, you can ask your employer for a written statement of particulars. You must still be working for your employer or be within 3 months of your leaving date. The employer must provide the written statement within 1 month of your request.

If you are classed as a worker and your contract started before 6 April 2020, you have no legal right to a written statement of particulars, however, you could still ask for one.

If you have not received your written statement of particulars

Talk to your employer about it. If this does not resolve the matter, contact us for further advice.

Read more about written statements of particulars on Acas, Gov.uk or, for Northern Ireland, NI direct.

Your employer may add a probationary period as a term of your contract starting from day one at work and lasting a number of weeks or months.

Some employers will offer employees less favourable terms and conditions and a lower salary during their probationary period. They can do this provided it is written in the contract. However, they cannot take away your basic statutory rights. Also, you should be treated as an employee from day one.

Your continuity of employment should start on your first day of work, not when the probationary period has ended. This becomes important if your employer uses continuity of employment (that is, length of service) for certain entitlements such as annual leave.

See our contract checklist on what to check before you agree to your probation period

Extensions

Your contract should state the length of your probationary period and whether it can be extended.

Extensions should be a reasonable length and for a specific purpose. For example, you might have been absent from work due to sickness and been unable to demonstrate that you have met certain probationary criteria. When extending your probation period, the employer should provide a reason why you can’t be confirmed in post, the particular improvement required or goals to be achieved during the extended probation period and the new date when the probation period will end. 

Notice

Your notice period should be detailed in your contract. Read more about notice periods in our advice guide. However, you may be dismissed during your probation period on shorter notice than you would be once confirmed in post, subject to the minimum statutory notice entitlements.

Performance issues and probation

Your work objectives should be Specific, Measurable, Achievable, Relevant and Time bound  (SMART). Read more about this in our performance reviews section in our capability and performance guide.

As a contract of employment is generally binding on both employer and employee, it is generally unlawful for one party to unilaterally change the terms and conditions in the contract without the agreement of the other.

The terms in your employment contract can only be changed in the following circumstances:

• you and your employer agree on the change
• your contract provides, either expressly or by implication, for changes to be made*
• there is a collective agreement that is binding on you, the terms of which are changed through negotiation
• your employer terminates your existing contract and substitutes it with a new one that includes the variation. The employer should follow the code of practice for dismissal and reengagement.

*Check your contract as it may contain a flexibility clause. This can enable your employer to make changes to your terms and conditions, for example, relocation. Generally, employers should only use flexibility clauses to make reasonable changes. 

Where a contract is changed, your employer should provide a written statement of amendments.

If your employer breaches your contract, you can respond in one of the following ways:

• Agree to the breach by carrying on working under the revised terms.
• Raise a grievance or make a claim to an employment tribunal (industrial tribunal in Northern Ireland). You would need to have made it clear to your employer that you do not accept the new terms and conditions
• Refuse to work under the new terms.  Your employer may then decide to dismiss you and re-hire you on a new contract with new terms and conditions. If this happens you may be able to bring a claim for unfair dismissal. It's important to be aware that employment tribunals frequently find dismissals fair if the employer can point to good reasons for introducing the changes to the contract, for example, economic necessity. If the dismissal is without notice, you may be able to bring a claim for wrongful dismissal.

If you are in this situation and considering any of the above please contact us before taking any action. There are eligibility criteria and qualifying periods for taking an unfair dismissal claim to an employment tribunal.

If your employer wants to change your shift pattern, please see our guide on changes to shifts and check your legal rights. Your contract of employment, or local policy, may allow changes to your shift pattern, provided your employer follows the correct process.

If you have the legal right to continue working to your existing shift pattern, firstly discuss this with your employer. Contact us if the issue cannot be resolved.

If you want to change your hours or pattern of work, read our flexible working advice guide.

If you are employed on a fixed term contract, you have legal protection under the Fixed Term Employees (Prevention of Less Favourable Treatment) Regulations 2002 – find out more in our fixed term contracts advice guide and on Gov.uk.

A secondment is when an employee is transferred temporarily from their substantive post to another post - usually within the same organisation but can be in another organisation - and is expected to return to their substantive (or equivalent) post at the end of the secondment.

Employers don’t have to offer secondments, however they can be valuable for staff development and progression and provide employees with work experience and development opportunities outside of their normal area of work, while also addressing a short-term need to cover a post.

There are no laws that deal specifically with secondments. They are temporary and informal variations to your role that have to be agreed with your managers. Therefore, all terms and conditions of secondments are as outlined in your local policy.

If your employer does offer secondments, there should be a clear policy that should cover things like:

• the minimum and maximum length of secondments
• how long your substantive post will remain open to you while on secondment
• what happens if it is not possible to keep your substantive post open, for example due to an organisational change
• how extensions to secondments are handled
• whether a secondment may be terminated early by you, your substantive line manager or your secondment line manager
• whether there is a point after which the secondment is considered to be your substantive post.

If you work in the NHS in Wales, please see their secondments policy.

Where a change is proposed to a secondment agreement (for example, an extension or ending it early) it will affect you, your secondment team and your substantive team, and so must be agreed with all parties; any party can disagree with the change.

Some contractual terms may vary during the period of the secondment, for example, salary, work base and hours of work. The terms and conditions of the substantive post should remain as they were prior to the secondment but include any incremental pay rises.

Ensure that you get a written contract that outlines the full terms and conditions of your secondment. Check it carefully and read our contract checklist.

Historically, bank workers have not been considered to be employees because the normal requirement of a contract of employment does not exist between the parties. In particular, a 'mutuality of obligation' which is the compulsion on an employee to attend work and the compulsion on the employer to pay them for that attendance, is not in place in this type of contract. 

Regardless of where you undertake your bank shifts, you should always check and have in writing any agreements made regarding pay, training, sickness, and so on. You have the right to paid statutory annual leave and you should check your contract on how this will be accrued and paid. The practicalities of booking, changing, and cancelling shifts will vary from workplace to workplace. Please check your paperwork carefully so that you are clear on the correct procedures.

You will also be subject to the workplace's policies around behaviour/conduct at performance review and supervision (including clinical supervision where appropriate). Specific policies around discipline, investigation and grievance will also apply to you. When you start working for the staff bank be sure to find out how you can access these policies and ask the bank manager if you're unsure.

ACAS have further guidance on zero hours contracts.

Please see our Agenda for Change advice guide for further information on NHS bank staff and reckonable service.

Northern Ireland

Please see Labour Relations Agency (LRA) for information in Northern Ireland.

Lay-offs can happen when there is insufficient work for employees and they are asked to stay at home. Short-time working is where an employee’s hours of work are reduced. Unless your contract states otherwise, your employer is legally bound to pay you for your contracted hours and should not be telling you that you have to pay time back at a later date.

Read more in our cancellation of work guide.

Some contracts contain repayment clauses that come into force should you want to leave your employer. These can be time-specific but substantial. They often relate to previous training or other costs incurred by the employer. If you are an internationally educated professional, please see our working and coming to work in the UK guide for further guidance, including a letter template to help you handle such repayments.

If you are not happy with the clause, try to renegotiate it before you sign. 

If you have already signed the contract, it is legally binding. If you work without sight of or reading your contract it will be implied that you have accepted the terms of the contract. Your employer is legally entitled to reclaim the money, but you can try to negotiate the repayment.

Follow these steps: