Employment contracts in Victoria.

An employment contract sits on top of the National Employment Standards and any applicable modern award or enterprise agreement. It cannot reduce those minimums, but it does everything they do not: define the role and reporting line, set remuneration and how it is reviewed, deal with hours and reasonable additional hours, and set out probation, notice, confidentiality, intellectual property and post-employment obligations.

The clauses that matter most are the ones tested at the end of employment. A properly drafted set-off clause allows an annualised salary to absorb award entitlements. An IP assignment clause makes sure work created by an employee belongs to the business. A restraint clause with cascading periods and areas gives a court something enforceable to read down rather than strike out entirely.

Casual and fixed-term employment now carry their own rules. Casual employment is defined by reference to the practical reality of the relationship, with an employee choice pathway to permanent employment, and a compliant casual conversion and Casual Employment Information Statement process. Fixed-term contracts are limited in duration and renewal, with exceptions that must be assessed before the contract is offered.

A contract that does not match how the person is actually engaged is worse than no contract. Courts and the Fair Work Commission look at the totality of the relationship, and a document contradicted by practice is evidence against you.