Staff recruitment pack

Included in this service:

• Employment agreement
  Employers should use this employment agreement when taking on new members of staff. This agreement must be given to the employee within two months of starting. Failure to provide employees with a written statement of employment within two months is unlawful and could result in costly appearances before an employment tribunal.
  
  This agreement covers issues such as sick pay and incapacity, holiday entitlements, lay-offs, pension schemes, references, medical reports, company cars, restrictive covenants, disciplinary procedures, confidentiality, share option schemes, home working, teleworking and part-time working, among others. This agreement should be used in conjunction with an employee handbook containing more detailed HR and employment policies.
• General purpose ex-employee reference letter
  Use this letter to create a standard reference about a former employee for a potential new employer.
  
  It is not a legal requirement to provide a reference, unless you have a contractual obligation (e.g. it says so in their employment contract or in a settlement agreement). However, failure to provide a reference could leave an employer open to allegations of discrimination. You should therefore seriously consider providing an employee with a reference when asked. It is therefore important that your reference is free from language that could be discriminatory and the format of this reference should help you in this process.
  
  For data protection reasons, it's likely that you'll need the employee's written consent to provide the information contained in this reference, before sending it.
• Job description
  Use this document to create a job description. This document can be used when recruiting staff, to assist you when conducting a staff appraisal, to attach to an employment contract or statement of terms/written particulars of terms or in order to update a previously drafted job description. This document creates three separate lists containing the duties and/or responsibilities of the role, the skills and knowledge required to perform it and required experience. There is also the option to insert an estimate of the percentage of time taken up by each responsibility or duty. Please note that this document is only for use in the United Kingdom.
• Staff appraisal form
  Use this document to create a set of forms to be used when conducting staff appraisals. This document will allow you to appraise your staff against previously set objectives and/or by rating (scoring) their performance against the specific skills and/or behavioural characteristics that are required for the role. The document also allows you to create a self-appraisal questionnaire to assist in the appraisal process and (if required) forms to record future set objectives and/or training and development needs. We recommend using the appraisal forms with an up-to-date job description. Please note that this document is only for use in the United Kingdom only.
• Criminal convictions declaration form for job applicants
  When recruiting, employers may use this document to produce a form for all applicants invited to interview to complete. The form asks the applicant to declare whether they have a current criminal conviction, and if so, to give details of the offence(s) and sentence(s). Additionally, there are clear instructions in how employers should use this information to ensure that they comply fully with the requirements of the Rehabilitation of Offenders and Data Protection Acts.
  
  Important Notice
  In order to use this document you will need to have installed Adobe Acrobat Reader (version 4 or above). The Adobe software is free and may be downloaded by clicking here.
• General purpose reference request letter
  Use this to create a reference letter from an employer to a referee. It will contain a number of useful standard questions seeking information that an employer may find useful. You should include a stamped, addressed envelope with this letter to facilitate a quick response from the referee. The applicant will need to give their consent for their old employer to provide a reference to you. To avoid delays, the applicant should give that consent to them directly or to you, so you can send it with this letter.
• General purpose rejection letter
  Employers should use this document to prepare a letter to send to unsuccessful job applicants, whether or not they attended an interview. The letter advises them that they have been unsuccessful on this occasion and includes the option to keep their details for future vacancies, should they agree to this.
• Interview checklist
  Employers should use this form when interviewing job applicants. The form includes a comprehensive checklist of topics to be covered during interview, with suggestions for specific questions and the opportunity to allocate marks and give comments for each. The completed checklist can provide evidence that you have taken a consistent and fair approach to all candidates. If properly applied, this can assist in providing protection against complaints of discrimination. You should keep all completed checklists for unsuccessful applicants for at least six months for this reason.
  
  Important Notice
  In order to use this document you will need to have installed Adobe Acrobat Reader (version 4 or above). The Adobe software is free and may be downloaded by clicking here.
• Job application form
  This document creates a standard job application form to be used when hiring new staff. It should assist you in forming an objective view of the applicant's suitability as part of your selection process. The document also takes into account discrimination legislation to help protect your business against accusations of discrimination at an employment tribunal. You may wish to use this application form in combination with a criminal convictions declaration form, although you should send these two forms separately to the applicant.
  
  Important Notice
  In order to use this document you will need to have installed Adobe Acrobat Reader (version 4 or above). The Adobe software is free and may be downloaded by clicking here.
• Job offer letter
  Use this document to create a suitable offer letter when making a job offer to a prospective employee. This offer letter should be a summary of the key parts of the full employment documents, i.e. an employment agreement or employment statement, which must be provided to an employee within two months of starting. The letter also requests the prospective employee to provide the correct documentation to prove their right to work in the UK prior to commencing their employment - to help protect you from liability.
• New employee induction checklist
  Use this document to create an induction checklist when taking on a new member of staff. As the checklist has not been catered to a particular business or industry, it might be the case that there are certain items that will not be applicable. However, the checklist should provide the necessary structure as part of a wider induction programme.
  
  Important Notice
  In order to use this document you will need to have installed Adobe Acrobat Reader (version 4 or above). The Adobe software is free and may be downloaded by clicking here.
• Letter seeking consent for a medical report about an employee, worker or new recruit

  This letter asks an employee, worker or potential new recruit for their consent for you to get a medical report about them. You have a choice of requesting the report from their GP (or other medical adviser), or from a medical adviser of your choice (e.g an occupational health adviser).

  When asking for a medical report, there are various issues around consent and data protection. This letter will help you to meet your obligations.

  You can use it in a number of situations, such as:

  • If the staff member is absent due to a long-term problem;
  • If they are persistently absent for short periods;
  • If you're considering the need for reasonable adjustments under equality law, or;
  • To help make a final recruitment decision.