Contract of Employment

If there is an "employment relationship" there would be a "mutuality obligation". This means that:

• the employer has an obligation to provide work and pay for it

• the worker has an obligation to be available to do the work they have been paid for

If either party fails to honour their "obligation", it raises a question about whether the employment relationship has been breached.

An "obligation" is a legal requirement that someone does something in the future.

If you are a "casual worker" (for instance, you are on a list an employer has who might call you for occasional work) you would not have an employment relationship as the employer would have no obligation to offer you work and you would have no obligation to accept it. However, if work is offered and accepted, then the mutual obligation of both parties would prevail for the period of the casual work.

There are two sorts of employment contract:

• Individual 

• Collective

Individual contracts can be:

• Written - and would contain expressed terms (i.e. written details of the contract such as wages, hours of work etc)

• Oral - even if you don't have a written contract, you still have a contract. Its just that it is verbal. The problem will not be the legality of the contract but what is in the contract if there is a dispute of about its terms.

• Implied terms - apply to both written and oral contracts

Collective Agreement

These are negotiated  between Recognised Majority Unions and the employer and are to product of collective bargaining.

In Trinidad and Tobago Collective Agreements are registered in the Industrial Court and are legally binding. They can be between three (3) and five (5) in duration.

"Implied terms" are not written (that is, they are not "expressed") but, by implication, are part of the contract of employment. Examples of implied terms are:

• the employers a duty to provide a secure, safe and healthy environment (now  lgeal requiremetn under the Occupational Safety and Health Act)

• the worker's duty of honesty and loyal service

• mutual trust and confidence between employer and employee:

• any terms that are necessary to make the contract workable (e.g. that someone employed as a driver will have a valid driving licence … and keep it!)

It’s common to include probation periods – typically three months in length – within any new employment contract.

A probation period is the period of time at the start of an employment. It is a sort of trial period (in reality more for the employer than the worker). An employer cannot arbitrarily dismiss during the probationary period. Good practice is to:

• review the worker's performance half way through the probationary period to highlight any weaknesses

• assist the worker in addressing any weaknesses to 

The probationary period can be extended if the worker needs more time to reach the required standard.

What's the difference?

In simple terms:

• a self employed person has a Contract FOR Service, gets paid for a job and is responsible for their own National Insurance and PAYE

• a worker has a Contract OF Service, works for an employer, get paid for their time and the employer will deduct NIS and PAYE 

A worker or self employed - how tell the difference? See the useful Guidelines issued by the National Insurance Board.

WARNING ,,, some employers try to pretend that their employees are "self employed" when they are really workers. It is the substance of the employment relationship that is important not the form it takes.

Can the employer dip their hand into your pay packet? To find out what the employer can and cannot do with your wages, check the section on Deductions from Wages.

Contracts cannot be changed unilaterally (otherwise you could change your contract and give yourself a pay increase!).

If an employer wants to change your contract of employment they should talk to you. But sometimes this discussion comes with implied threats - "unless you accept a pay cut I'll have to make redundancies ..."  Or ..."if you don't accept this new contract I will dismiss you."

A key problem here is that the employment relationship is fundamentally unequal. If there is a recognised union that helps to balance things up a bit. But if not, here are some options.

WARNING: If you do nothing to challenge the change to your contract the employer can argue that, by implication, you have accepted the change. The longer the period between when the change is imposed and when you find a trade union for help, the more it can be argued that you have accepted the change.

So ... unless you are prepared to simply say "NO" to the employer, and see if they implement their implied threats, the most important thing is to make it clear as soon as possible that you do not accept the change and that it has been imposed under duress.

Put your objection in writing - and keep a copy. This is important because, if your matter has to go to the Industrial Court, as a breach of contract paper trails are vital.