What can I do if employees, who have been with the company for many years, who had not previously signed a contract, refuse to sign one now?

In this situation the employee should be advised, that whilst no contract has been evidenced in writing, a contract of employment is already in existence by virtue of the party’s relationship over the preceding number of years.

Ideally the contract of employment would be a comprehensive document, acknowledged by both parties, setting out clearly all the significant terms of the employment relationship.

However, in practice this is not always the case. For instance, contracts may be partly written and partly oral and may have terms implied into it by statute, common law, fact or custom and practice as described below. The most obvious source of written terms of employment is of course found