It’s important that when you’re preparing contracts for your workers or your clients that you’re mindful of what’s important and why.
Oncore has strict protocols that are designed to be in the best interests of your recruitment agency. When sending through contracts for new starters, we might ask for you to re-do documents; but it’s not to be pedantic or to make your lives any tricker than they need to be. We take risk and compliance seriously, and are here to help you do this too. Your contracts are legally binding, hence the importance of ensuring they are correct.
Why do I need to provide a copy of the agreement with my client?
We often ask you for certain documents or information, because it is part of our audit requirements for the funding facility and insurance that we offer. The copy of your client agreement serves as confirmation that you will receive payment for the work that’s been completed by the person that you’ve placed (which is a critical legal document when looking at cashflow management).The client agreement also clearly provides confirmation that the worker that you’ve placed will be covered by the terms and conditions that are in turn reflected in their contract; this is particularly critical for insurance purposes.
What are the risks if the contract terms between your client agreement and worker agreement don’t match?
Whether you are using individual client agreements for each worker you place, or are using master services agreements or general terms of business, it is important that you maintain consistency between these agreements - this helps to ensure that all parties are aligned and have the same expectations. In the event that there is a dispute or queries that come up that require the review of contractual terms, these are the two key reference documents that you have to fall back on. Notice periods or bespoke information on contract termination, rates, invoice payment terms or indemnity clauses are all contained within these documents. If these terms are inconsistent; you may be left financially exposed.
How important are start and end dates on my contracts? Why? Does it matter if they don’t match or do not accurately reflect the work period?
Having a start and end date represented on a contract is important. This clearly demonstrates that the position is not ongoing; and reduces the risk of misrepresenting that the work is permanent in nature. Ensuring that the dates align on all agreements that are in place (client and worker) is critical to formalise the arrangement, making sure that all parties are aware of when the worker will be on site - when the client can expect to have invoices for, and when the worker can expect to be paid for. These dates also form a key part of the insurance component, knowing when cover commences and concludes - and having this clearly represented. As these are legal documents, it is critical that dates always have the correct year reflected. The less that is left open to interpretation - the better!
What rate information is required? How specific does it need to be?
Specific rate information is required to ensure a worker is paid correctly. This includes clearly representing any additional rates or allowances, and the conditions associated with these. Without the conditions reflected, it is not clear when additional rates or allowances might apply - creating potential ambiguity. The more definitive the instructions are in a contract; the less room there is for misinterpretation or a subsequent dispute. It is also likely to reduce questions from workers or clients post-onboarding. Oncore must also have this information so that we can have all rates and allowances configured in our systems. Having this information from the outset means that when the worker first completes their timesheet, all applicable rates are available for them. This means that they are fully set up from their start date; providing a superior and seamless experience.
Rates on contract documentation: do they need to include a $, per day/per hour and inclusive/exclusive of super, GST etc?
Contract rates should contain all relevant information; making it clear whether there are any inclusions or exclusions. Accidental omissions in a contract can create ambiguity, and you want to ensure items such as pay rates are not open to interpretation. Rates should include the appropriate currency symbol ($), all applicable dollars and cents, whether the rate is per hour or per day and should specify if the rate includes super, or is plus super or super exempt. For casual employment contracts, rate breakdowns must be exact and also clearly include the appropriate casual loading. For workers engaged via a Pty Ltd company, make sure rates are clearly marked as GST inclusive or exclusive.
Signed contracts: do we need both signatures on the contracts?
In all forms of contracts that we would expect to see; there will likely be a minimum of two parties needing to agree to the terms. For example, your agency and your client will be executing agreed terms of business OR your agency and the worker you’ve placed. For these agreements to be legally binding; all parties engaging in the agreement will need to sign the agreement. Oncore will need to hold fully executed agreements on file. This ensures compliance for funding and insurance.
Signed contracts: is an e-signature acceptable?
Many businesses have now engaged platforms to manage the e-signing of their contractual documents. Oncore will accept both e-signatures and wet signatures. It would be our expectation that e-signatures are time and date stamped, and have clearly been done so via a secure platform. Typed signatures in a font that appears in cursive script isn’t acceptable and we will request you provide an updated agreement with either an e-signature or a wet signature. This ensures that we address any potential issues down the line, if a party advises that a contract was fraudulently signed and executed.
Will Oncore accept an official Purchase Order (PO) from my client in lieu of a signed agreement or contract?
Yes. Provided the PO has the name of your recruitment agency, the name and billing information of your client, and the applicable PO number. Ideally, the PO document will make reference to the individual performing the work; however, in some instances, PO’s may cover the work of multiple resources or be apportioned to a project rather than a person.
On an independent contractor agreement between my agency and a candidate with their own Pty Ltd company, what particulars do I need to make sure are reflected?
For a contract between your agency and a Pty Ltd company, this will need to list all of the company particulars as well as the name of the “nominated consultant” eg. the personnel who will be performing the work. You will need to ensure that you list the ABN & ACN, as well as the company name as it is legally reflected via ABN lookup (found here: https://abr.business.gov.au/). If a company has a registered trading name, this will also be reflected in the ABN lookup and can be noted on the contract. The ABN for the worker must be a Pty Ltd or a trust. Oncore cannot facilitate payments via Sole Trader or Partnership ABN’s.
What particulars do I need to have reflected on the agreement with my client? What happens if information is missing?
You will need to ensure that your client agreement has the correct ABN, ACN and company name reflected. These agreements or terms of business are the key document that outlines trading terms and effectively confirms that your recruitment agency will be paid for services rendered. It is important that the invoices that Oncore raises on behalf of your agency match the details provided on the client agreement - this is another opportunity to check consistency between client name and ABN via ABN lookup. If this information is missing or inconsistent, we will require you to amend the agreement.