Lay Leaders Contract of Employment Template
If in strike through: guidance and to be deleted from final version.
If in italics: wording you need to add or may wish to use in certain circumstances. To be used without being in italics or brackets in final version.
STATEMENT OF EMPLOYMENT PARTICULARS FOR A LAY WORSHIP LEADER
Name of Employer: [Name of congregation] (“the Employer”)
Address of Employer: [Congregation Address]
Name of Employee:
Address of Employee:
Date on which this statement given: [Date of giving employee this statement]
- DATE OF EMPLOYMENT
Your employment under this contract will commence on [date of start] If a fixed term contract: [and end on (date) with no further notice having been given. If the Employer wishes to offer you further employment after the end of this contract it will make you a written offer to this effect.]
- CONTINUOUS EMPLOYMENT
Your period of continuous employment for the purposes of your statutory employment rights will begin on [date of start]. Your employment with any previous employer does not count as part of your continuous period of employment with the Employer.
This appointment is subject to the rules and to the terms of the Trust Deed of the Congregation. You may ask to see that Deed.
If a fixed term contract: The appointment will be subject to an annual review when the congregation and the Lay Worship Leader will consider all circumstances, including financial, to determine whether the appointment may continue.
- JOB TITLE AND DUTIES
You have been offered the position of [Job Title]. This title does not limit your duties, and the Employer may require you from time to time to do any work within your capacity or change your duties.
- REPORTING TO
This position will report to the (Job title of Chair of Trustees, or similar)
- PLACE OF WORK
Your place of work will be at the Choose which are applicable: Chapel, your home address and any other places where the Employer might require you to work on a temporary or permanent basis.
You will not be required to work outside of the United Kingdom.
You are required to ensure that your workspace at home is arranged in such a way that your health and safety are assured.
- DUTIES
The Lay Worship Leader shall attend to the reasonable pastoral and other needs of the Congregation in accordance with custom and conduct Sunday and such other worship as may reasonably be arranged with the Congregation. At present these regular acts of worship are at [time] [each Sunday] if a part time contract and, taking into account your part time appointment, you will be expected to lead [number] services a month.
There will be other duties and requirements associated with your job and, in addition, as a term of your employment you may be required to undertake various other duties as may be required of you at your principle place of work or at any place of work as the Employer may reasonably decide.
You are required to faithfully and diligently perform such duties, whether or not within the scope of your normal duties.
- PROBATIONARY PERIOD
During your 3 months in your post, you will be on probation and as such your performance in your role will be continually assessed and reviewed by your manager, and you will be given feedback on your progress. At the end of this period, or as soon as possible after that, there will be a formal review of your performance with your manager. At this stage your position will be confirmed, or your probation extended, or your employment terminated.
Whilst you are on probation, or an extension of it you will be only eligible for Statutory Sick Pay should you become ill and your notice period, for either party, will be 1 week, unless specified otherwise.
Should you feel, during this probationary period that the post is not suitable for you, you should also give one weeks’ notice of termination.
- WORKING HOURS
Your normal working hours shall be [YY] a week, working on [days of week worked]. Your normal lunch break will be 60 minutes and this time does not count towards your working hours.
You shall be permitted absence from the pulpit on at least [insert number] Sundays during each calendar year provided that you ensure a suitable deputy attends on each occasion at no expense to the congregation. Any ministerial engagements involving additional Sunday absences shall be at the discretion of the congregation.
It has been agreed that on occasion, your manager may require you to work beyond your contractual hours to meet business needs without extra remuneration. On such occasions, reasonable notice of this requirement will be given.
The Employer reserves the right to amend these hours as may be reasonably required. Any change to your hours will be made after consultation with you.
- OVERTIME
You are not entitled to overtime payments.
- REMUNERATION
You will receive pay at the rate of (£XXXX) per annum.
You will be paid in equal monthly instalments by bank credit transfer direct into your bank or building society account on or around the (28th) of each month. Each instalment will include payment for the calendar month in which payment is made and will be subject to the normal National Insurance, Tax and if applicable, pension deductions. The Employer reserves the right to change the date on which you are paid subject to giving you at least one month’s notice.
Should it be necessary to calculate a day’s pay for salary purposes, your current annual salary will be divided by 260.
- EXPENSES
The Congregation shall pay you approved expenses wholly, necessarily and exclusively incurred in your work in respect of travel, postage, telephone calls and rentals, internet charges, mobile phone charges, stationery and other outgoings. Use of your own vehicle will be reimbursed according to the mileage rate recommended by the General Assembly and it is your responsibility to ensure the vehicle is insured for such use.
- HOLIDAY ENTITLEMENT
If a part time contract (Your holiday entitlement will be the pro rata equivalent of a total of 5.6 weeks a year.) If a full time contract (Your holiday entitlement will be 5.6 weeks a year.) This includes the entitlement to public holidays. You will be paid the same amount each month, irrespective of whether you take either public holidays or booked days of holiday off in that month. What does vary is the amount of time that you are at work.
The actual amount of paid holiday that you are entitled to in a year depends upon how many days a week you are contracted to work. For example, if you are contracted to work on 3 days a week you are entitled to 3/5 x 5.6 weeks of paid holiday a year = 3.36 weeks of holiday = 10 days of holiday on which you normally would have worked in a year. (10 days = 3.36 x 3 days a week). If you work 2 days a week your entitlement is 2/5 x 5.6 weeks = 2.24 weeks = 4.5 days of paid holiday in a year.
Public holidays: If a public holiday falls on a day when you would normally work then you will usually agree with your manager to work on another day that week. In this way you leave yourself with more days of paid holiday that you can choose when to ask for.
Bookable holiday: Holidays may only be taken at times convenient to the Employer and must be arranged in advance and with reasonable notice. Requests for holiday will be considered on a first come, first served basis.
Should you leave the Employer before having accrued the holiday entitlement you have taken, the Employer will be entitled to deduct from your salary one day’s pay for each excess day taken.
You will not be paid in lieu of untaken holiday that you do accrue to your final day at work except on termination of employment.
If you become sick during a requested period of paid leave, you must comply with the requirements of the sickness reporting and certification procedure, if you wish to have this sickness period discounted from the period of paid leave.
During periods of absence and long-term sickness, holiday will continue to accrue at your contractual rate.
- ATTENDANCE AND TIMEKEEPING
You are required to maintain good timekeeping and attendance at work. Persistent lateness and absence may result in action being taken under the Disciplinary policy.
- ABSENCE FOR SICKNESS OR INJURY, AND SICK PAY
If you cannot attend work because of sickness or injury you are required to telephone your manager giving the reason for non-attendance, by 09:30am on each day of absence. If you are unable to notify personally due to the nature of the illness, someone else may make contact on your behalf. It is your responsibility to ensure that your manager is notified.
A self-certification system operates for absences from work due to sickness or injury not exceeding seven days (including weekends and other non-working days). Immediately on your return to work you must obtain, complete and return a self-certification form to your manager.
Sickness or injury absence exceeding seven days (including weekends and other non-working holidays) must be covered by a doctor’s fit note. All sickness or injury absence will be entered on your employment record.
The Employer reserves the right to require you to undergo a medical examination at its request if deemed necessary. The Employer will pay the cost of any such examination and all information given in connection with it and any report upon it shall be fully disclosed to the Employer, providing that you give your consent for that to happen. You may have the right of access to the report in accordance with the Access to Medical Reports Act 1988.
The Employer reserves the right to terminate your employment where your level of absence is deemed as unacceptable by the Employer or, in the case of long-term absence, where the Employer considers that there is no realistic prospect of a return to work within a timeframe which is acceptable to the Employer.
However, no employee will be dismissed on grounds of sickness absence without due warning and without the appropriate procedure having been followed. In addition, where an employee experiences sickness absence as a result of a disability, the Employer will act in line with the Equality Act 2010 and will consider making reasonable adjustments to reduce the impact of the impairment that has led to your absence.
- EMPLOYER SICK PAY
There is no entitlement to Employer sick pay in excess of Statutory Sick Pay (SSP). In the event that you are incapacitated through illness or injury from performing your duties, any payment made by the Employer to you during such absence shall be determined by the Employer in its absolute discretion.
In cases where you have been off work due to illness for four days or more (including non-working days), the Employer will pay SSP, in line with the provisions of the SSP scheme.
SSP and any additional discretionary Employer sick pay, if any is paid, are subject to the usual deductions for PAYE, National Insurance, pension contributions etc.
- RESTRICTIONS
During your normal hours of work for the congregation, you may not, without the prior written consent of the Employer, devote any time to any business or to any public or charitable duty or endeavour, other than the business of the Employer
During the period of your employment you will not, without the prior written consent of the Employer, undertake any work or other activity which may prejudicially affect your ability properly and efficiently to discharge your duties and responsibilities. The decision as to whether or not an activity would have a prejudicial effect shall be in the absolute discretion of the Employer.
- NOTICE
During your probationary period your notice period is one week from either side.
Once the probationary period is successfully completed, and you have been confirmed in your appointment, notice periods increase.
You are required to give one month’s notice to terminate your employment for any reason. Initially you are entitled to be given one calendar month notice by the Employer. After five continuous years of service, you are due 5 weeks of notice and one additional week of notice for each complete year of service to a maximum of 12 weeks of notice.
A failure to give the required written notice will entitle the Employer to withhold payments of amounts due under your contract, but not paid, in order to recoup losses that it suffers due to your failure to give the correct amount of notice.
The Employer reserves the right to pay you in lieu of notice where this is deemed appropriate by the Employer. The Employer may terminate your contract without notice in cases of gross misconduct or some other fundamental breach of contract on your part or by mutual agreement. If after the termination of your employment you are found to have committed an act of gross misconduct, you will not be entitled to receive pay in lieu of notice. This means the pay in lieu of notice will be withheld or action taken to recover it.
- WORK DURING NOTICE PERIOD
During the period of notice, the Employer may require that you shall not work nor enter the Employer’s premises but hold yourself available to do so. Should the Employer require that you do not enter the Employer’s premises during this time, you should also not contact colleagues and those who are in contact with the congregation unless you are given express permission to do so by your manager.
- DEDUCTION OF WAGES AND EXPENSES
The Employer is entitled to deduct from your salary (or any other amount payable to you) any sums which are due from you to the Employer including (but not limited to) outstanding loans, advances, overpayments of salary or expenses. Holiday entitlement taken, but not accrued, maybe deducted at the time of termination of employment.
- OBLIGATIONS ON TERMINATION
On termination of your employment (however arising) you shall:
Immediately deliver to the Employer all documents, materials, records, correspondence, papers and information (on whatever media and wherever located) relating to the business or affairs of the Employer or its business contacts, any keys, passwords and any other property of the Employer which is in your possession or under your control, Irretrievably delete any information relating to the business of the Employer or individuals which is stored on any device memory and all matter derived from such sources which is in your possession or under your control outside the Employer’s premises; and,
Provide a signed statement that you have complied fully with your obligations under this clause together with such reasonable evidence of compliance as the Employer may request.
- PENSION
Under the provisions of Government guidelines, we will automatically enrol you into our pension scheme unless you tell us you wish to opt out.
The contribution rate from the Employer will be [xx%] and you will need to contribute a minimum of [5%], although you may contribute more. The Government will also contribute through tax relief.
A contracting-out certificate is in force in respect of your employment with the Employer.
- REFERENCE DOCUMENTS
Further information regarding your employment can be found within policies such as Health and Safety, the Grievance Procedure, Disciplinary Procedure and Disciplinary Rules. These Procedures do not have contractual force and may be amended and updated at any time.
There are no collective agreements that form part of this contract.
- GRIEVANCE PROCEDURE
If you have a grievance relating to your employment, you should raise this with your manager in the first instance (or another trustee where a grievance relates to your manager). If you are unable to resolve your grievance informally, the full grievance procedure may be used. Your manager has a copy of the procedure. The procedure is for guidance only and does not form part of the contract of employment and may be amended from time to time.
- DISCIPLINARY RULES AND PROCEDURE
The disciplinary procedure and rules are found in a separate procedure and can be supplied by your manager. The procedure is for guidance only and does not form part of the contract of employment and may be amended from time to time.
The list of rules is not to be regarded as exclusive or exhaustive. The Employer has the right at its discretion to add to, amend or delete disciplinary rules. Any breach of disciplinary rules will render you liable to disciplinary action.
The Employer reserves the right to suspend you during disciplinary investigations and proceedings, for which time you will be paid your normal rate of pay. The suspension will be reviewed regularly to ensure it remains appropriate.
- WHISTLEBLOWING
The purpose of this policy is to enable you to raise any genuine concerns you might have about certain wrongdoings within the Employer without fear of reprisal, to provide you with guidance on how to raise those concerns and to enable us to investigate such concerns and deal with them appropriately. You can ask your manager for the policy.
- HEALTH AND SAFETY
The intention of the Employer is to provide safe and healthy working conditions for all staff, but the Employer request your support to ensure such achievement of these conditions. Health and Safety at Work legislation places certain duties on all employees, these include the following:
Employees must be conscious of the health and safety implications of their actions and/or omissions and take reasonable care for the health and safety of themselves and others.
Employees must ensure that health and safety equipment is not interfered with, and that any damage is immediately reported.
Employees must co-operate with the Employer to enable a duty or requirement imposed under health and safety legislation to be performed or complied with.
Employees must use all equipment in accordance with their training and operating instructions and must inform their line manager if they become aware of any danger or shortcoming in protection arrangements for health and safety.
Accidents at work
Any accident at work involving personal injury should be reported in the Accident Book.
Fire precautions
You should familiarise yourself with the instructions about fire which are displayed in the Employer’s premises, with the position of fire extinguishers.
Further information about your Health and Safety responsibilities can be obtained from your manager.
Breach of these requirements may result in disciplinary action being taken against you in accordance with the disciplinary procedure, which may result in your dismissal.
- DATA PROTECTION
As part of our administrative process, the Employer will hold personal information about you that will include details such as your name, address, age, bank details and emergency contact details. The Employer may also hold sensitive personal information (i.e. special category data as defined in the Data Protection Regulations 2018) about you, for example, health and sickness information.
- CONFIDENTIALITY
You shall not use or disclose to any third party either during or at any time after the period of your employment with the Employer any documents, confidential facts or information relating to the affairs of the Employer or of individuals which come to your knowledge during such period, nor shall you make or keep any copies of documents or extracts therefrom.
You will not upon termination of your employment take with you or retain any records of any kind pertaining to the Employer members or any other information. Any and all such items shall be deemed at all times to belong to the Employer and shall be surrendered to the Employer on demand. The Employer shall be entitled to withhold any salary or other sum due to you until such time as any such demand is met to its satisfaction.
- CHANGES TO TERMS AND CONDITIONS OF EMPLOYMENT
This contract may be altered by the Employer in writing at any time subsequent to the date of signing this contract and after consultation with you.
Where changes to the terms set out in this statement occur by agreement through consultation with you, you will be informed of these by means of a written statement of change which you will be issued within one month of the change.
- RIGHT TO WORK AND SAFEGUARDING
This offer is made on the understanding that:
- You confirm that you have the legal right to reside and work in the United Kingdom under the Asylum and Nationality Act 2006.
- You confirm that you are not barred from working with children/vulnerable adults or from engaging in regulated or controlled activity.
- You consent to a criminal record check and you are aware that details of pending prosecutions, previous convictions, cautions or bindovers will be disclosed along with any other relevant information which may be known to the police, and Lists held in accordance with the Safeguarding Vulnerable Groups Act 2006.
- You understand that a check will be made with the Independent Safeguarding Authority and that it is an offence for any person to commence Regulated Activity without first being ISA-registered.
- You agree to inform the person within the Congregation responsible for processing applications for Disclosure and Barring Service/SCRO/Access NI Service checks if you are convicted of an offence after you take up this position. You understand that failure to do so may lead to the immediate suspension of work with children or vulnerable adults and/or the termination of your employment.
- You agree to inform the person within the congregation responsible for processing applications for Disclosure and Barring Service/SCRO/Access NI Service if you become the subject of a police and/or a social services/(Children’s Social Care or Adult Social Services)/social work department investigation. You understand that failure to do so may lead to the immediate suspension of work with children or vulnerable adults and/or the termination of your employment.
- I have read and understood the above clauses and accept the offer of employment on these terms.
Signed: (Employer)
Date:
Signed: (Employee)
Date: