Starting and leaving a job
Your legal rights as an employee: Where they come from
Your rights and obligations as an employee come from several different places:
- your employment agreement – the terms of your employment agreement, which you should have in writing from your employer.
- your employer’s policies, house rules, codes of conduct and handbooks – these documents set out extra information, expectations and standards that may not be expressly set out in your employment agreement. It is common for employment agreements to require both the employer and employee to follow what is contained in these documents in your employment agreement. It’s a good idea to request copies of these documents from your employer (or potential future employer) before you sign an agreement or start work.
- guaranteed minimum rights – legislation that sets out your minimum rights at work around things like pay, hours, and leave. An employer can offer you better pay and conditions than these minimum rights, but must not offer you less. (For more on these minimum rights, see: “Employment conditions and protections”).
