Being employed means you will have money to feed your family, as well as purchase what you want for yourself. However, before you start counting how much you are earning, it is a good idea to know your basic rights at work. The UK has come a long way and one of the government’s most important duties is to protect the rights of the working class. Seek the advice of competent employment law solicitors if you find yourself in a difficult situation with regard to your rights in the workplace.

Basically your rights at work will depend on two things:

• Contract of employment
• Statutory rights

The contract of employment will vary from one person to another; however, it does not have the ability to eliminate rights you have by law. If for example, your contract says that you can only have 2 weeks of paid holiday per year, however, the law says that you are entitled to 28 days of paid holidays in a year, it means that your contract is void and it will not apply.

On the other hand, if your contract says that you have more paid holidays in a year, then your contract applies.

Statutory rights

Statutory rights are those based on laws as passed by Parliament. All workers have certain legal rights but there are some workers who are not entitled to certain rights. There are times when employees only get certain rights after they have been with their employer for a particular period of time. The following are the just some of the basic rights most people are entitled to:

• The right to an itemized pay slip
• The right not to have deductions made from your pay illegally
• The right to a paid holiday.  Full-time employees have at least 28 paid holidays in a year. Part-time employees can only get the prorated number of holidays in a year.
• The right to a written statement of the terms of employment within a couple of months starting work
• The right to a paid maternity leave for women
• The right to a paid adoption leave
• The right to a paid paternity leave for men
• The right to a paid time off for prenatal care which applies from the day the employee starts workingf
• The right to work until the age of 65
• The right against discrimination at work
• The right to have written reasons for dismissal from an employer
• The right of part-time workers to the same contractual rights
• The right to compensation if dismissed unfairly
• The right not to suffer dismissal from bringing into light matter of public concern, such as malpractice

Contracts of employment will be illegal if tax, as well as other contributions to the national coffers, are not paid; the employee gets a part or all of their wages via cash in hand so as to avoid having to pay tax and other fees.

When it comes to wages, there are a number of rights, which you should be aware of. All employees are entitled to be paid for the work they have done and they are also entitled to payment if they are ready and willing to work and the employer has not provided them with any.