Employment Offer Letters for Small Businesses

Yes, you can always call candidates on the phone and hire them, making it clear when you would like them to start work or come in for training. However, you can also present them with a job offer letter which can protect you should the employee someday decide to take legal action against you, a practice that has become increasingly popular and has tied up the legal system with an abundance of lawsuits.

A job offer letter simply puts in writing the terms of the job offer so that ambiguities do not arise later. This also makes it clear that either party can terminate employment when they so choose. In addition, changes made to the terms of employment later on can also be written into the agreement and signed by both parties.

Make sure you:

• State clearly the salary and how often payment is made (weekly, bi-weekly, monthly).
• Give the prospective employee time to think about the offer and respond.
• If there is a qualifying period before the employee is entitled to benefits, include how long that time period will be.
• Include the date of hire and title of the position.
• Make it clear that employment is "at will" and that the employee can be terminated at any time by the employer.

Make sure you don’t:

• Promise raises, bonuses, vacations or perks that may not be forthcoming
• Make any guarantees that the employee will be employed for any length of time
• In short, don’t promise anything that you cannot follow up by providing.

Typically the terms of employment are spelled out in the offer letter. However, for executives and other high level employees, you might want to compose a more formal agreement.

Click here to check out a sample Employee Offer Letter.