Employment Agreement Template and How to Draft One (2026)

What is an employment agreement and who needs one? An employment agreement is the contract between an employer and an employee. It records the role, the pay, and the rules of the relationship, and it protects both sides if something goes wrong. Many jurisdictions require at least a written statement of the main terms, and even where a short letter is legal, a proper agreement prevents the disputes that come from unwritten expectations. The template below works for a permanent, salaried role and can be adapted for most office employment. It is written to be clear first and lawyer-friendly second. This is a general template, not legal advice. Employment law is highly local, covering minimum wages, statutory benefits, working hours, termination, and the enforceability of restraints, so have a qualified lawyer in your jurisdiction review the final document before you use it. ## Employment agreement template ```

EMPLOYMENT AGREEMENT This Agreement is made on [date] between: (1) [Employer legal name], of [address] (the "Company"); and (2) [Employee full name], of [address] (the "Employee"). 1. POSITION AND DUTIES The Company employs the Employee as [job title], reporting to [manager/role]. The Employee will perform the duties of that role and other reasonable duties the Company assigns, and will devote their full working time to the Company during working hours. 2. START DATE AND PROBATION Employment begins on [date]. The first [e.g. 3 to 6] months are a probation period, during which either party may end the employment on [e.g. 2 weeks'] notice. The Company may extend probation once in writing. 3. PLACE OF WORK The Employee's base location is [address / remote / hybrid]. The Company may require reasonable travel for the role. 4. HOURS OF WORK Normal hours are [e.g. 9:30 to 18:00], [days], with the hours needed to perform the role. [State overtime or time-off-in-lieu policy if any.] 5. REMUNERATION The Company will pay a salary of [amount] per [year/month], payable [monthly] in arrears, subject to lawful deductions. Salary is reviewed [annually]; a review does not guarantee an increase. 6. BENEFITS AND STATUTORY ENTITLEMENTS The Employee is entitled to [leave, health cover, retirement or provident contributions, and other benefits] and to all statutory entitlements required by law in [jurisdiction]. 7. LEAVE The Employee is entitled to [number] days of paid annual leave, plus public holidays and statutory sick and other leave as required by law. 8. CONFIDENTIALITY The Employee will keep the Company's confidential information secret during and after employment, use it only for the Company's benefit, and return or delete it when employment ends. 9. INTELLECTUAL PROPERTY Work product the Employee creates in the course of employment belongs to the Company. The Employee will sign documents needed to confirm this. [Pre-existing and unrelated personal inventions are excluded.] 10. OUTSIDE ACTIVITIES The Employee will not take other work that conflicts with the role or the Company's interests without written consent. 11. RESTRAINTS AFTER EMPLOYMENT For [period] after employment ends, the Employee will not [solicit the Company's clients / solicit staff / compete within a defined area], to the extent such a restraint is enforceable under applicable law. 12. TERMINATION After probation, either party may end the employment on [notice period] written notice. The Company may terminate without notice for serious misconduct. The Company may pay salary in lieu of notice. 13. GRIEVANCE AND DISCIPLINE The Company's grievance and disciplinary procedures apply and may be updated from time to time. 14. GOVERNING LAW This Agreement is governed by the laws of [jurisdiction], and the courts or tribunals of [place] have jurisdiction. Signed for the Company: ____________ Employee: ____________ Name / title / date Name / date

2. **Position and duties (clause 1).** Describe the role clearly, and keep the "other reasonable duties" line so you are not locked to a rigid job description.
3. **Probation (clause 2).** Set a realistic length and a shorter notice period during probation. Confirm your local law allows the probation terms you choose.
4. **Remuneration (clause 5).** State gross pay, the frequency, and that deductions are lawful ones. Make clear a review is not a promised raise.
5. **Benefits (clause 6).** List what you offer and confirm statutory entitlements apply. These differ sharply by country, covering items such as retirement or provident fund contributions, gratuity, health insurance, and social security.
6. **Confidentiality and IP (clauses 8 and 9).** These protect the business. For IP, assign work created in the role to the company and exclude the employee's genuinely personal, unrelated inventions, which several jurisdictions protect.
7. **Restraints (clause 11).** This is the clause most likely to be unenforceable. A non-solicit of clients or staff is more widely upheld than a broad non-compete. Some jurisdictions void post-employment non-competes almost entirely, while others enforce only narrow, reasonable ones. Draft the minimum you need and add the "to the extent enforceable" wording.
8. **Termination (clause 12).** Set a lawful notice period, keep the right to dismiss for serious misconduct, and remember that many countries require a fair process and sometimes severance. Employment is not "at will" in most of the world. ## The clauses that cause the most disputes - **Notice and termination.** Too short a notice period, or no fair process, is the most common source of claims. Match the notice to local law and keep it balanced between the sides.
- **Restraints.** Overbroad non-competes are frequently struck down. Keep them narrow and reasonable in time, area, and scope.
- **IP assignment.** Assigning everything, including prior and personal inventions, is often unenforceable. Carve those out.
- **Variation.** A clause letting the employer change terms at will can be challenged. Significant changes usually need agreement. ## Jurisdiction points that change the rules Employment law is one of the most local areas of all. Minimum wage, maximum hours, overtime, paid leave, statutory benefits, termination process, and severance are set by law and cannot be contracted away. In India, for example, the Shops and Establishments Acts of each state, provident fund, gratuity, and the labour codes all apply. In the United States most employment is "at will", which is unusual globally. In the United Kingdom and much of Europe, dismissal needs a fair reason and process. Post-employment non-competes are enforceable in some places and largely void in others. This varies by jurisdiction, so treat the template as a starting structure and align every clause with local law. ## Where a contract workspace helps Drafting one employment agreement is manageable; issuing dozens across different roles and countries, keeping each aligned with changing labour law, and tracking probation end dates, notice periods, and renewal of fixed-term contracts is the ongoing work, and it is exactly what an AI contract workspace can carry. Instead of copying last year's template and hoping the restraint clause is still enforceable, you generate a draft from a brief, see each clause marked favourable, neutral, or unfavourable to your company, edit a term in plain English, and let the workspace track the key dates. [Adira](https://adiralaw.com) is one workspace built around that idea, keeping drafting, per-clause risk, version history, e-signing, and deadline tracking together and tuned to how your company contracts. The template above works on its own; a workspace just makes running employment contracts at scale far less manual. Start from the structure above, fix the notice, IP, and restraint clauses to your local law, and have a lawyer check the final version.