What Are My Rights as an Employee without a Contract

Since “exempt” employees do not receive overtime pay, it may be in an employer`s interest to classify an employee as exempt. However, to be legally exempt from overtime pay, employees must earn at least twice the minimum wage per month and fall into one of the following categories: If a contract is not written or if a written contract is silent on this issue or attempts to violate the minimum legal right in the ESA, eligibility does not correspond to the much more generous common law opinion. You probably don`t need a contract if you`re hiring an administrative assistant, shipping agent, or IT professional, but it can be a very good idea if you`re filling other positions. You`ll probably want to prepare an employment contract and get a new employee signed if you`re hiring professionals or senior executives. Most employees, including former employees, have the right to access and obtain a copy of their personal records to find out what information their records contain about them and their work performance (California Labor Code Section 1198.5). Your employer must allow you to view and copy your file within a “reasonable” time after you have requested to view and copy it. You can add your own documents to your personal file if you disagree with some of the information in the file. Various laws provide similar rights for most government employees. If you do not have a written employment contract that defines or limits the notice period, the common law applies. Judges establish the common law. Over the years, lawyers have negotiated employment contracts and various rules have evolved. There is no clear formula, but judges now consider things like years of service, the employee`s age (if the employee is older, they may need more time to find a new job = more notice), the employee`s training (if the employee has a high school diploma, it may be harder to find work = more layoffs).

Ultimately, an employee with 10 years of service may be entitled to a notice period of between 6 months and one year. Let that work on you for a few moments. You read that right. Although the Employment Standards Code provides for a maximum notice period of 8 weeks, this is simply the minimum amount. A judge could quadruple that amount. It should be noted that explicit terms do not necessarily have to be part of a written contract and these terms can often be part of an employee manual or written details about the nature of your work and what is expected of you. Not all complaints of unlawful dismissal are based on discrimination. If you have an employment contract with your employer, even if it is an implied contract, and it is terminated prematurely, your employer may have breached the contract. In this case, you may be able to assert a claim for unlawful termination or breach of contract. Then cancel for no reason. If you resign without giving reasons, you must inform the employee appropriately.

The cancellation will be calculated in good time (i.e. 2 weeks in advance). However, most employers prefer to pay only the notice period rather than give an employee the required notice period. All provinces in Canada have laws that set the minimum amount of notice that an employer must provide. I reproduce the dismissal provisions of the Manitoba Employment Standards Code below. You can find them here in the Employment Standards Code. For example, if you fire an employee with 7 years of employment, you must terminate it for 6 weeks. But this is just the beginning. So how do you know who you are? In the end, only the labour court can answer a tricky legal question. However, there are a few clues that can help you clarify which category of employees you belong to.

Your legal rights to maternity leave if you do not have an employment contract include, but are not limited to: Employees may belong to different legal categories, which affects the extent of legal protection they enjoy. There are significant differences between the legal rights of those who are classified as employees and those who are classified as employees. For example, an employee cannot claim unfair dismissal and is not entitled to statutory severance pay. However, they are entitled to the national minimum wage and a minimum amount of paid annual leave. If you apply for a job and your former employer is contacted for a reference, that employer is legally able to say bad things about you or your job performance, as long as the employer`s comments are true. On the other hand, your former employer cannot knowingly give false information about your job performance to prevent you from getting a new job. (California Labor Code Section 1050). In addition, your former employer can express their opinion about your job performance (p.B. “He was unreliable”), but not false factual statements (p.B. “He stole”). Because there is such a fine line between what is legal and illegal, it is the policy of many employers not to provide information other than employment data for former employees. Although these guidelines are widely used, they are not required by law.

This content is not intended to be legal advice or a complete guide to employment contracts. An employer who has questions about employment contracts is strongly advised to seek advice from an employment law specialist. No matter what stage of the business or the problem you are facing, Small Business BC offers a range of seminars and one-on-one consultation sessions that are suitable for any business. An employment contract may be concluded orally or in writing. The terms of your employment usually decide whether or not you have an oral employment contract. Below are three examples of costly pitfalls an employer may encounter if they don`t have a written employment contract with their employees, as well as some of the potential benefits that can be achieved through a written employment contract. Again, you have legal rights, regardless of the terms and nature of your employment relationship. This means that your employer cannot discriminate against you, directly or indirectly, regardless of your race, gender, age, sexual orientation, religion, disability, marital status, etc. If there is an express term that says otherwise, the term express wins. For example, if you`ve worked 25 hours a week in the past two years, but your contract specifically states that you work 30 hours, you need to work 30 hours a week, unless your boss has specifically agreed to change your hours. Ultimately, every employer has a duty of care to their workforce and is responsible for your overall well-being.

With respect to any contract, whether oral or written, implied terms are rarely written or spoken, but are established by case law and, when a dispute reaches the courts, are “read” in the contract by a court. An employment contract is an agreement between the employer and the employee that describes the basic details of the work. If it is signed by the employee, the contract becomes binding. There are different types of employment contracts. Even within a company, different employees may be asked to sign different employment contracts depending on the tasks of each employee. Sometimes there is no written contract, but a contract is involved by an oral comprehension or simply by the behavior of the employer and the employee. As an employee, the implicit terms of your contract mean that you are obligated: it is illegal for an employer to deduct money from an employee`s paycheck to compensate for an accidental error, lack of money, or breach (in other words, a loss caused by a simple mistake or accident). In order to make a deduction under the law, the employer must prove that the error, lack of money or violation was caused by dishonesty, intentional misconduct or gross negligence on the part of the employee.

In most occupations, it is also illegal for an employer to deduct the cost of a uniform or tools (exceptions are tools or equipment used in certain occupations or trades, and equipment used by hairdressers, hairdressers and manicurists). Damages for unlawful termination may include incidental payment, promotion, reinstatement, advance payment, damages, reasonable accommodation, injunctive relief (which requires the employer to make or stop), punitive damages, and attorneys` fees. .