The starting point when drafting a contract of employment should always be the list of specific requirements in section 1 Employment Rights Act 1996. However, this is a basic list and many businesses need a contract which goes far beyond it.
A business should think about the practical arrangements for the role, the pay and benefits being offered, the work the employee does and any risks the business wants to protect itself against. Businesses should consider whether restrictive covenants and intellectual property clauses are relevant to the work being carried out.
Businesses should also consider the different categories of roles and whether different contracts should be used to reflect the seniority of the roles, the nature of the role and the tasks those categories of employee do. For example, a factory worker on the shop floor may need clauses relating to shift work, lay off and short time working; whereas for someone in the office working from home for part of the week these clauses may not be relevant but they may need hybrid working clauses instead.