Recruiting staff

Regardless of whether your employees are full-time or part-time, you will have responsibilities to them. Some apply straight away, others after a minimum period of continuous employment - see continuous employment and employee rights.

What employers must provide to full-time and part-time staff

Written statement of employment

You must give them a written statement of the main terms and conditions of their contract of employment within two months of starting their employment where the contract of employment is to last more than one month. See the written statement of employment.

Itemised pay statement

You must give them an itemised pay statement at or before the time of payment. See pay: employer obligations.

Health and safety

You'll have to make sure the working environment is safe and secure. See safer ways of working.

Insurance

You must also have insurance to protect against claims for any illnesses, injuries, or diseases your employees may pick up as a result of working for you. See business insurance: the basics.

Tax and payroll duties

You'll need to register as an employer with HM Revenue & Customs (HMRC) to set up a payroll, deducting tax and National Insurance contributions from your employees' pay and forwarding the money to HMRC. See how to register as an employer.

Breaks and holidays

Your employees will be entitled to a minimum level of paid holiday, a maximum length of a working week (unless they opt out of this), and minimum levels of rest breaks. See hours, rest breaks, and the working week. Also, see know how much holiday to give your staff.

Paying staff

They must also be paid at least the national minimum wage. Find out the National Minimum Wage and National Living Wage rates.

Sickness

If members of your staff are off sick for more than three working days, they may be entitled to statutory sick pay. See manage absence and sickness.

Statutory entitlements

If your employee is pregnant or is about to or has recently become a parent, they may be entitled to maternity, paternity, adoption leave, or shared parental leave. They may also be entitled to parental leave during the first 18 years of their child's life (longer for a disabled child). Since April 2022, parents may also be eligible for parental bereavement leave and pay.

Read more on statutory leave and pay entitlements.

Flexible working

You must also seriously consider any requests from employees who wish to work more flexibly. See flexible working: the law and best practice. Since April 2015, any eligible employee has the right to make a flexible working request, not just those with children or caring responsibilities.

Fair treatment

You must treat your employees fairly and avoid discrimination. If things do go wrong, all employees are entitled to fair treatment, whether you must dismiss them, make their position redundant, or if you're selling your business. Read more on how to prevent discrimination and value diversity.

Reasonable adjustments

If your employee is disabled, you must make 'reasonable' adjustments to reduce or remove the impact of physical features of your premises if they put the employee at a substantial disadvantage compared with non-disabled employees. Read more on disabled access and facilities in business premises.