Changing the terms and conditions of an employment contract

An employment contract can always be changed if agreed upon jointly by both parties. All changes should be agreed upon in writing. If the employment contract is subject to material changes, it is advisable to re-write it.

Employers cannot, as a rule, change any material terms and conditions of an employment contract unilaterally. An employer may, however, change the terms and conditions of an employment contract if the employer has a justification for terminating the employment contract. In such a case, the employer can terminate the employment contract and offer a new one instead of termination. The changes would take effect after the period of notice. The employee may choose not to accept the new employment contract, in which case the employer may terminate their employment. If the employer does not have legal grounds for terminating the terms and conditions of the employment contract, the employee should notify the employer, in an evidential manner, that they do not accept the changes and require that the previous terms and conditions be complied with. Otherwise, the employee may be interpreted as having accepted the changes through their passiveness.

Employers may make temporary and short-term or minor changes to an employee’s tasks based on the employer’s right to supervise the work, i.e. their right of direction. The more specific the employment contract is in describing the tasks of an employee, the less opportunity the employer has, within the framework of its right of direction, to determine the employee’s tasks.