Get Employment Contracts That Actually Protect Your Business

There’s no blanket legal requirement for a written contract for every employee, but without one, terms default to the award, the NES and general law — leaving critical protections like restraint of trade and confidentiality completely absent. A written contract is standard best practice for every employer.

Yes, but restraint of trade clauses are only enforceable to the extent they’re reasonable in scope, geography and duration to protect a legitimate business interest. Overly broad restraints are often struck out entirely by courts, so they need to be drafted carefully for your specific business.

No. A contract cannot contract out of minimum entitlements under an applicable award, enterprise agreement or the National Employment Standards. Any clause attempting to do so is void, and the underlying minimum entitlement still applies.

Most Australian employers use a probation period of 3 to 6 months, which should be clearly stated in the contract. Note that probation periods don’t remove unfair dismissal protections entirely — the minimum employment period (6 or 12 months depending on business size) is what determines eligibility to claim.

We recommend reviewing contract templates at least annually, and immediately after any award wage increase, NES change, or significant change to your business structure — such as the 1 July 2026 award pay increases and high income threshold change.

Employment contracts and contractor agreements are legally distinct, and misclassifying a worker exposes employers to back-pay, superannuation and penalty risk. The correct classification depends on the substance of the working relationship, not just the label used in the agreement.

No. Fair Work Centre is an independent private advisory service for employers. We are not associated with or authorised by the Fair Work Ombudsman, the Fair Work Commission, or any government authority.