MAKING THE JOB OFFER (PT 2)

In the previous issue we looked at what to do prior to making the offer so that you've ensured you've established all the aspects of the package,  so that the offer you can make is as attractive as possible.

We then looked at how best to make the offer and manage the acceptance and also how best to ensure that your offer is accepted if it is below the candidate’s expectations.

In this issue, we carry on with the steps involved in make a job offer, right through to the candidate starting with you.

Confirm The Offer In Writing:

Once the candidate has said 'yes' it is important to follow up with the written confirmation of the offer and the contract of employment.

Most candidates accept a position on the proviso that it is subject to contract and therefore the letter and contract must be sent quickly to prevent the hire unravelling. If you run your own department or business this should be very straightforward. In larger organisations it can take a couple of weeks to send out the paperwork via the official channels and this provides plenty of time for the candidate to become disillusioned with the new employer and - potentially - to therefore continue to look at other options in the market place. I have seen numerous appointments not happen because of the delay in issuing the offer letter and contract and my firm advice is to avoid this at all costs!

The Offer Letter:

The offer letter is a positive document that welcomes the candidate to the team and provides a summary of the package and expectations as detailed in the verbal offer you've already given.

It should detail all the benefits that come with the job - that is, all the aspects that you brought together prior to contacting the candidate to make the offer: annual holiday entitlement, guaranteed bonuses and annual bonuses, allowances and so forth. (All the points detailed in the previous edition of this blog.)

And, of course, the offer letter also needs to detail the expectations that come with the job - again, as you pulled together earlier. (Things such as working hours, dress code and so on.)

The offer letter should also have two copies of the contract of employment enclosed.

The Contract Of Employment:

This section has been written specifically to help people who are just starting their own businesses and those who do not have contracts of employment. Larger / established employers will have a standard contract of employment with a schedule to add the salary, holiday entitlement and any special conditions.

For anyone reading this who is just starting out - of course it is important to be legally compliant but it is also vital to conserve money wherever possible and paying solicitors for an employment contract is an expense which you may want to put off until it is absolutely necessary.

Employees are entitled to be given a Written Statement Of Particulars within two months of their starting date. Below, please find a link to a sample of a Written Statement Of Particulars, provided by BERR and Business Link:

BERR / Business Link

What's The Difference Between A Contract And A Written Statement Of Particulars?

A contract of employment exists as soon as an employee starts work. Starting work proves that they accept the terms and conditions offered by the employer. Both employer and employee are bound by the terms offered and accepted. Often the contract is verbally agreed and not written down.

However, employees are entitled by law to be given a written statement setting out the 'main particulars' of their employment within two months of their start date. The Business Link tool linked-to above enables you to meet your legal requirement to provide these statements.

There are other optional contractual terms that you may need for your business, for example covering who owns the intellectual property created by your employee, or confidentiality agreements. If this is the case, you may want to consider including these within a written contract.

If employers want to change the terms of an employee's contract of employment, they need to get his or her prior consent to the changes. Employers are not required to issue a new written statement each time one or more of these particulars change. However, they are required to give employees written notification of any changes within one month of the change occurring.

It is important to understand that the Written Statement Of Particulars is not a contract of employment. However, a standard contract of employment template can be purchased from about £15.00 on Internet - for example from this site.

Rejection Letters:

Once you've succeeded in filling the vacancy, then you should either phone the rejected candidates and/or write to them to let them know that they have not been successful. You should approach this in a similar way to the way we rejected unsuccessful candidates at CV stage in Issue 10 of this blog (Protecting your Reputation and Setting up Interviews (Pt1). The conversation/letter should be polite and constructive, so that the unsuccessful candidates remain positive about your business and would entertain looking at you again in the future if applicable, or recommend your business to other people as potential customers or employees.

Next Time:

Taking steps to ensure that the new employee actually does join your company.