Employment contract
An employment contract is the legal agreement between employer and employee — role, compensation, working time, notice, governing law. Required in writing across most of Europe.
What an employment contract covers
The non-negotiable sections in most European jurisdictions:
- Parties: legal employer entity and employee.
- Role and place of work: title, location, remote arrangement.
- Working time: weekly hours, overtime rules.
- Compensation: base, variable, when paid.
- Holiday entitlement: statutory minimum plus any extras.
- Notice: each side’s termination notice.
- Probation: length and notice during probation.
- Governing law: which jurisdiction the contract sits under.
How it differs from the offer letter
The offer letter is the high-level “yes, here are the terms.” The employment contract is the legally binding document. In some EU countries (France’s “promesse d’embauche”), the offer letter has the legal weight of a contract — confirm with local counsel.
Why SMBs trip on this
Three common mistakes:
- Using a contract template from a different country without local-law review.
- Missing the probation clause and the notice that applies during it.
- Forgetting to specify the place of work for remote employees, which affects tax and social security.
A 30-minute review with local counsel per template saves the legal cost of fixing it later.