How to write an employment contract - Template | Saldo accounting

Are you running your own company and it's time to hire more people for your team? Then you need to know how to write an employment contract in accordance with Swedish law. This is important for both employers and employees. For you to feel secure and to avoid any problems. We will go through what an employment contract is, what it must contain and some important things you need to consider when writing an employment contract. We will also look at how employment contracts and collective agreements work.

What is an employment contract

It is a document that sets out who has been hired, who the employer is and the types of conditions under which the employment will be valid. In order for an employment contract to comply with the LAS rules (i.e. the Employment Protection Act), it should be issued in writing. When it is in written form, it also serves as a certificate of employment.

What an employment contract should contain

When writing an employment contract, there are a number of points you need to include in order for the contract to be valid. The following points are the most important:  

1. Information about the employer and the employee. Both name and address must be included.
2. A date for the start of the employment.
3. Form of employment. Is it an open-ended contract (i.e. a permanent position) or is it a fixed-term contract?
4. Job title. What will the employee be working on? Both title and job description should be given.
5. Salary. How will the employee be paid? Is it a fixed salary such as a monthly salary or is the salary variable (perhaps based on performance or achievement)?
6. Salary periods and any benefits included in the employment.
7. Semester. How many days of holiday can the employee take and is the employee entitled to take his/her holiday in advance or not?
8. Working hours. When is the employee expected to work and how many hours per day or week?
9. Notice period. What happens if the employer or the employee wants to terminate the employment and how far in advance must such a decision be notified?
10. End of employment. This only needs to be included if it is a fixed-term contract.
11. Probation. It must be clear when the probationary period will become a permanent position.
12. workplace. Is there a requirement for where the work should be carried out?

How does an employment contract work?

There is no legal requirement for an employment contract to be in writing. However, as we mentioned earlier, under the LAS regulations, you as an employer are obliged to provide a new employee with all information about the applicable working conditions in writing. The employee has the right to receive this information at the latest one month after the start of the employment. An important detail to mention is that unless specifically stated in the employment contract, the employment is assumed to be permanent or permanent.

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Are there collective agreements?

When writing an employment contract, it is important to take into account whether you are bound by a collective agreement or not. If there is one, the employment contract must comply with the provisions and rules stipulated in the collective agreement. As an employer, you are obliged to inform your employees of the provisions of the collective agreement.

Some important things to consider

Your employees are obliged to carry out their duties as stated in their employment contract. An unclear job description can lead to you and your employees having different ideas about what they should deliver in their jobs.

As an employee, you have a duty of loyalty to your employer, but it is you as the employer who is responsible for what this duty of loyalty means and what applies in your company.  

If your activities are of a sensitive nature, it may be appropriate to agree on confidentiality. For example, employees may not be allowed to share sensitive information about your clients.

There may also be a need for a non-competition clause in the employment contract, for example that your employees are not allowed to engage in competing activities while their employment is ongoing.