Anti-Bribery and Employment
The Bribery Act 2010 imposes sanctions on those who accept or offer bribes. Simply-Docs has added new Anti-Bribery and Employee Expenses Policies to the Employment and Business folders so that employers can put in place proactive measures to demonstrate that they cultivate an anti-corruption ethos in their organisation. The Anti-Bribery Policy explains what constitutes bribery under the Bribery Act, the steps that the organisation and its employees are to take so as to avoid bribery and reduce risks and, in the worst case, the action the organisation will take as a consequence of an employee being a party to bribery. The Employee Expenses Policy sets out the conduct expected of employees in terms of expenses and advocates a common-sense approach to hospitality and gifts.
Sales Employment Contracts
New Contracts of Employment have been drafted with anti-bribery measures within them. This is particularly important where employees work on commission and employees could be tempted to accept bribes or other corrupt inducements in order to make a sale. These contracts are ideal for sales employees who are responsible for a particular sales territory.
There are further options for managers who have a car included in their benefits package: Sales Manager Employment Contract with Car and PILON, and those without a car: Sales Manager Employment Contract No Car with PILON, and those where a more detailed commission structure is necessary: Sales Manager Employment Contract (Commission Structure).
The Sales Representative Employment Contract is suited to a more junior sales role. All contracts include a Payment In Lieu of Notice (PILON) clause, allowing the employer to ask the employee to leave immediately without breaching the Employment Contract and can therefore preserve the integrity of the non-competition, confidentiality and exclusivity clauses.
Other Employment Documents
We have also reviewed our employment documents and made the following updates in the light of the Bribery Act and the Anti-Bribery Policy. As an act of bribery can constitute gross misconduct on the part of an employee, the Disciplinary Policy and Disciplinary Procedure has been updated to reflect this. The Recruitment Policy now makes provision for roles that may be vulnerable to bribery risks. Senior employment contracts have been updated to include a clause dealing with bribery. The Senior Employment Contract – Payment in Lieu, Senior Employment Contract – No Payment in Lieu, and Senior Employment Agreement with Restrictive Covenants are positions where the employee may be more likely to be in a situation where potential acts of bribery can take place, such as giving or receiving gifts or hospitality or making facilitation payments to foreign officials.
The contents of this Newsletter are for reference purposes only and do not constitute legal advice. Independent legal advice should be sought in relation to any specific legal matter.