Fixed term provision in Employment Agreement held to be invalid by Employment Relations Authority …

A retail employee brought a claim for unjustified dismissal in the Employment Relations Authority after she was instantly dismissed by her employer for repeated absences from work.

While not part of the events that led to her dismissal, the Authority considered the nature of her employment agreement.

The employer and employee verbally agreed to the key terms of employment and the hours of work before the employment began. The employer did not provide a written employment agreement at this time.

The employer provided a written agreement one month into the employment. The written agreement stated that the employment was for a fixed-term period. This surprised the employee who believed she was hired on a permanent basis as there was no mention of a fixed-term when she verbally accepted the role.

The employee did not agree with what was recorded on the written agreement and so did not sign it. The employee tried to discuss the agreement with her employer but her employer was too busy to have a discussion. In the meantime, the employee continued to work her regular hours without having signed the written agreement.

The Authority stated that an employee is not required to accept new terms of employment that they do not agree with.

In this case, the employment terms were contained in the verbal agreement and that the employee is hired on a permanent basis. The fixed-term provision in the unsigned agreement was held to be invalid and so the employer could not rely on it.

Employers should always provide written employment agreements at the commencement of the employment relationship to prevent future disagreements on what was agreed at the time. Employers will also be in breach of their legal obligations if they do not provide a written agreement.