Standard employment contract.
A complete permanent employment contract — full-time or part-time, US and AU variants — covering position, compensation, leave, IP, confidentiality, termination, and the standard boilerplate. Pair with the employment offer letter.
EMPLOYMENT CONTRACT This Employment Contract (the "Contract") is made between [Employer Name] (the "Employer") and [Employee Name] (the "Employee"), effective from [Start Date]. 1. Position. The Employee is engaged in the position of [Title], reporting to [Reporting Line], on a [Work Pattern] basis, working ordinarily [Hours] per [period]…
What's inside the document.
Employer and employee details, position, start date, work pattern, location.
Base salary, payment cycle, bonus or commission, statutory and discretionary benefits.
Ordinary hours, reasonable additional hours, overtime treatment where applicable.
Annual, personal/sick, parental, public holidays. AU variant references Fair Work minimums; US variant references company policy.
Standard confidentiality obligations and assignment of work product to the employer.
Notice periods (both sides), grounds for summary termination, and the post-employment obligations that survive.
Non-solicit, optional non-compete (where enforceable). Reasonableness-scope drafting.
Employer and employee signature blocks with title and date.
A complete document set.
- Word document (.docx) — fully editable
- PDF — signature-ready
- Google Docs — one-click copy to your Drive
- 12 months of updates to this document
- Commercial-use licence for internal and client work
Three formats, one document.
- Word document (.docx) — fully editable
- PDF — signature-ready
- Google Docs — one-click copy to your Drive
6 steps from download to use.
- 01Replace the employer-name, ABN/EIN, and authorised-signatory placeholders.
- 02Fill in the position, start date, work pattern, location, and reporting line.
- 03Set the base salary, payment frequency, and any variable comp terms.
- 04Pick the jurisdiction (US / AU) at the top and delete the inapplicable clauses for leave, termination, and restrictive covenants.
- 05Confirm the modern award or enterprise agreement (AU) or applicable state employment law (US).
- 06Have employment counsel review before issuing. The contract is the operative document.
The right document at the right moment.
Use this contract for a standard permanent hire — full-time or part-time, in-person, hybrid, or remote. It pairs with the employment offer letter, which is the headline document the candidate reads at acceptance.
For casual, fixed-term, or contractor engagements, use the relevant variant instead. For senior hires with significant equity or unusual leave, start here and add the executive schedules from the executive offer letter.
Honest answers before you download.
- Do I need both an offer letter and a contract?
- Yes, in most cases. The offer letter is the headline; the contract is the operative legal document. Many US offers double as the contract; AU practice typically separates them.
- Which jurisdiction does this default to?
- Both US and AU clauses are present; pick the relevant one at the top and delete the other. The structure is identical; only the leave and termination clauses differ materially.
- What about industry awards (AU)?
- Reference the applicable modern award or enterprise agreement in the leave and pay clauses. The contract is the floor; the award sets minimums you cannot contract below.
Other documents in this neighbourhood.
Casual employment contract (AU)
Casual variant with the Fair Work loading and conversion clauses kept current.
Fixed-term employment contract
Time-bound engagement with defined end date.
Employment offer letter
Pair the contract with the offer letter at acceptance.
This standard employment contract template is a professionally drafted starting point and is not legal advice. The clauses follow current US and AU practice; adapt the document for your specific jurisdiction and have qualified counsel review any clauses you add before signing or distributing. Full disclaimer.