All fine print · Work
The important part of an employment contract
The salary is the part you read. The four parts that will actually shape your life are notice, scope, what happens to what you make, and what you cannot do afterwards.
The four parts that decide it
Notice period, both ways
How long they must give you and how long you must give them. Asymmetric notice is common and negotiable, and it decides how trapped you feel when a better offer arrives.
Duties and the elastic clause
The job description, plus the line that says "and any other duties reasonably required". That sentence is how a role quietly becomes a different job without a new contract.
Intellectual property
What the company owns of what you create. Check whether it stops at work made for the job or extends to anything you build in your own time, on your own machine.
Restrictions after you leave
Non-compete, non-solicitation, garden leave. Look at the duration, the geography and the definition of "competitor", which is often wide enough to cover your whole industry.
The traps
- A probation period during which notice is a few days, extendable at the company's discretion.
- Bonus described as discretionary, which means it is marketing until it is paid.
- A clause letting the company change your place of work, which can be a relocation dressed as an administrative detail.
Red flags
- A non-compete with no time limit, no geographic limit, or no compensation during it.
- Training costs you must repay if you leave, with no sliding scale over time.
- Anything that assigns you IP created before you joined.
Three easy wins
- Cap the notice you owe, or make it match theirs.
- Carve out your side projects by name in an annex, before you sign.
- Turn a discretionary bonus into a formula, even a conservative one.
Questions
Are non-compete clauses enforceable?
It varies enormously by country and even by region, and courts often narrow them rather than strike them out. Assume it will bite unless you have specific advice saying otherwise.
Should I sign before starting if the contract arrives late?
Starting work without a signed contract is common and usually still creates rights, but it removes your only moment of leverage. The week before you start is the strongest negotiating position you will ever have.
Now do it to the actual document
Paste the contract into the tool and see which sentences it thinks matter. Then check them against the four parts above.
Open the toolNot legal advice. This is a checklist of what to look for, written to be useful in any country. It is not advice on your document, your situation or your jurisdiction, and the law where you live may say something different. For anything that matters, pay a professional for an hour of their time.