ContractsCounsel Logo

Pennsylvania Employment Contract

Clients Rate Lawyers on our Platform 4.9/5 Stars
based on 10,596 reviews
No Upfront Payment Required, Pay Only If You Hire.

What is a Pennsylvania Employment Contract?

A Pennsylvania employment contract is a legally binding agreement that is executed between an employer and a new employee. This agreement describes the employee’s job duties and company policies that must be adhered to, and in return lays out compensation and benefits that the employee will receive in exchange for their work.

Pennsylvania is an “at-will” employment state. Under at will employment, employers have the right to fire employees at any time without cause or reason as long as the termination of employment doesn’t violate any discrimination laws.

The only other exception to at will employment is the existence of a valid employment contract. To supersede at will employment, the employment contract must include one of the following provisions:

  1. An agreement for employment for a definite duration
  2. A clause stating that an employee can only be fired for just cause
  3. Additional consideration
  4. Public policy consideration

Once an employee becomes a contracted employee, the terms of their employment are no longer “at will” and are now governed by the terms in the contract.

Are Employment Contracts Enforceable in Pennsylvania?

Yes. Employment contracts are legally enforceable in Pennsylvania. If either party violates the terms of the contract, the damaged party can pursue legal action for breach of contract.

For an employee to assert a claim of breach of contract and enforce an employment contract, Pennsylvania laws requires that a party prove the following four elements:

  1. A valid and legally binding contract existed
  2. The employee complied with the contract by performing their obligations
  3. The employer breached the contract
  4. The employee has sustained damages as a result of the breach

Employment contracts can also be enforced by employers against employees. Restrictive covenants like non-compete agreements protect the employer’s business interests by limiting an employee’s actions after a term of employment.

Non-compete and non-solicitation agreements are enforceable in Pennsylvania as long as they are reasonable. When considering reasonableness, courts will look at the duration of the contract, the geographic boundaries in place, and whether the agreement could cause harm to the public.

What Are the Legal Requirements for Pennsylvania Employment Contracts?

The legal requirements for a Pennsylvania employment contract are governed by Pennsylvania contract laws. Contracts can be either written or oral, but all enforceable contracts will contain the following elements:

  1. Intent. There must be clear intent that the parties planned to be bound by the contract terms. A signature on a written contract is one way to prove intent. Intent becomes harder to prove for oral contracts.
  2. Definite terms. The terms of the contract must be clear to be enforced.
  3. Consideration. The agreement must be supported by consideration. Consideration means that something of value is promised by one party to the other in exchange for something else of value. For the purposes of an employment contract, consideration can be the employee’s promise to work for compensation.

While oral contracts are legal, it is highly recommended that all employment contracts are in writing and signed by both parties. The elements of breach of contract are more difficult to prove without a tangible contract putting either party at a disadvantage if enforcement is necessary.

Types of Pennsylvania Employment Contracts

Employment contracts come in many forms based on the type of work the company does or the type of employee being hired to complete the job. Some employment contracts include restrictive covenants and sometimes these contracts are separate from the employment agreement.

Some common types of Pennsylvania employment contracts include:

See Employment Contract by State

Need help with an Employment Contract?

Create a free project posting

Meet some of our Pennsylvania Employment Contract Lawyers

Agnes M. on ContractsCounsel
View Agnes
5.0 (8)
Member Since:
July 13, 2020

Agnes M.

Managing Attorney
Free Consultation
Florida
14 Yrs Experience
Licensed in FL, NJ, PA
Florida Coastal School of Law

Agnes Mombrun Geter is the Founder and Managing Attorney of Mombrun Law, PLLC. She is an experienced attorney and is a member of the Florida Bar, New Jersey Bar, and the Pennsylvania Bar. The firm's practice focuses on Estate Planning, Business Law, and Debt Settlement including IRS Debt Relief. The firm's goal is to simplify the law and provide clients with the confidence and information necessary to make their decisions. The firm also provides project-based legal services to other attorneys and law firms, along with assisting as personal counsel and local counsel on legal matters.

Ryan W. on ContractsCounsel
View Ryan
5.0 (11)
Member Since:
June 8, 2021

Ryan W.

Attorney
Free Consultation
Mechanicsburg, PA
14 Yrs Experience
Licensed in PA
Widener University Commonwealth School of Law

Ryan A. Webber focuses his practice primarily on Estate Planning, Elder Law, and Life Care Planning. His clients range from young families concerned about protecting their family as well as aging individuals. Ryan provides Estate Planning, Trust Planning, Special Needs Planning, Public Benefit Planning, and Estate Administration. Ryan focuses on the holistic approach to the practice of elder law which seeks to ensure clients are receiving good care when needed and that they preserve enough assets with which to pay for such care. Many families and individuals also come to Ryan for preparation of their wills, power of attorney, and healthcare guidance documents. Additionally, Ryan assists small and medium sized business owners with their organizational and planning needs. From starting or winding down a business, Ryan provides quality business advice.

Samuel R. on ContractsCounsel
View Samuel
5.0 (41)
Member Since:
October 2, 2021

Samuel R.

Attorney
Free Consultation
Phoenix - Arizona
5 Yrs Experience
Licensed in AZ, PA, UT
Widener University Delaware Law School

My career interests are to practice Transactional Corporate Law, including Business Start Up, and Mergers and Acquisitions, as well as Real Estate Law, Estate Planning Law, Tax, and Intellectual Property Law. I am currently licensed in Arizona, Pennsylvania and Utah, after having moved to Phoenix from Philadelphia in September 2019. I currently serve as General Counsel for a bioengineering company. I handle everything from their Mergers & Acquisitions, Private Placement Memorandums, and Corporate Structures to Intellectual Property Assignments, to Employment Law and Beach of Contract settlements. Responsibilities include writing and executing agreements, drafting court pleadings, court appearances, mergers and acquisitions, transactional documents, managing expert specialized legal counsel, legal research and anticipating unique legal issues that could impact the Company. Conducted an acquisition of an entire line of intellectual property from a competitor. In regards to other clients, I am primarily focused on transactional law for clients in a variety of industries including, but not limited to, real estate investment, property management, and e-commerce. Work is primarily centered around entity formation and corporate structure, corporate governance agreements, PPMs, opportunity zone tax incentives, and all kinds of business to business agreements. I have also recently gained experience with Estate Planning law, drafting numerous Estate Planning documents for people such as Wills, Powers of Attorney, Healthcare Directives, and Trusts. I was selected to the 2024 Super Lawyers Southwest Rising Stars list. Each year no more than 2.5% of the attorneys in Arizona and New Mexico are selected to the Rising Stars. I am looking to further gain legal experience in these fields of law as well as expand my legal experience assisting business start ups, mergers and acquisitions and also trademark registration and licensing.

Brian S. on ContractsCounsel
View Brian
5.0 (10)
Member Since:
April 16, 2022

Brian S.

Chief Legal Officer
Free Consultation
Washington, DC
15 Yrs Experience
Licensed in DC, PA
Duquesne Law School

Corporate attorney with 14+ years of in-house counsel, people leadership and client management experience. Provides legal expertise and a business-oriented approach to problem solving and building lines of business. Consistently works under pressure, prioritizing and managing workload and simultaneous tasks to meet deadlines in a changing, fast-paced environment.

Matan S. on ContractsCounsel
View Matan
Member Since:
January 4, 2021

Matan S.

Attorney
Free Consultation
Philadelphia, PA
11 Yrs Experience
Licensed in NJ, PA
Rutgers

Matan is an experienced M&A, corporate, tax and real estate attorney advising closely held businesses, technology start ups, service businesses, and manufacturers in purchases, sales, and other exit strategies. Matan works with founders and first-and-second generation owners to strategically transition businesses.

Peter W. Y. on ContractsCounsel
View Peter W.
Member Since:
January 24, 2022

Peter W. Y.

Member
Free Consultation
Virtual
25 Yrs Experience
Licensed in CT, NY, PA
Haub School of Law at Pace University

Perceptive, solution-driven counselor and experienced attorney. Record of successful verdicts, settlements, negotiations, arbitrations, mediations, and deals. Effective claims management, litigation strategy, and risk consulting. Proven ability to oversee litigation teams, communicate to stakeholders, manage multiple projects effectively, and expand business relationships. Extensive experience handling legal issues in engineering and construction, environmental litigation, corporate and contractual, and insurance issues.

Amy Sue L. on ContractsCounsel
View Amy Sue
Member Since:
January 4, 2022

Amy Sue L.

President, Concierge Legal
Free Consultation
Washington, DC Metropolitan Area
27 Yrs Experience
Licensed in CA, DC, PA, VA
Pepperdine University School of Law

Ms. Leavens is a corporate attorney with 10 years of experience as the General Counsel, Chief Compliance Officer and Corporate Secretary of a Congressionally chartered, non-profit corporation, and more than 20 years of experience as an advisor to executive officers and boards of directors in for-profit and non-profit organizations. She has substantial experience within in-house legal departments managing cross-functional teams comprised of multiple business units and attorneys on large-scale mission critical projects, and within a global law firm as a manager of public and private, domestic and international, multi-party business transactions. She has unique experience implementing government-sponsored business initiatives. Ms. Leavens was honored in 2015 as one of Washington, D.C.’s Top Corporate Counsel by Bisnow and the Association of Corporate Counsel; nominated in 2014 for the Association of Corporate Counsel (WMACCA) Outstanding Chief Legal Officer Award; and the recipient in 2014 of WMACCA’s Community Service Award.

Find the best lawyer for your project

Browse Lawyers Now

Employment

Employment Contract

North Carolina

Asked on Apr 18, 2023

What's termination notice in an employment contract?

I recently accepted a job offer with a new company and I was given an employment contract to sign. I was looking through the contract and noticed that it mentions something about a termination notice. I'm not sure what this means or how it applies to my employment, so I wanted to ask a lawyer to get a better understanding of this clause.

Ryan D.

Answered May 30, 2023

A termination notice is a provision in an employment contract that specifies the amount of notice an employer must give an employee if they wish to terminate the contract, or vice versa if the employee wishes to leave. This is an important clause, as it offers some level of job security for the employee and some level of predictability for the employer. In most states, including North Carolina, employment is considered "at-will" unless there is a contract in place that states otherwise. This means that either the employer or the employee may terminate the employment relationship at any time, for any reason, or for no reason at all, as long as the reason isn't illegal (like discrimination). If your contract includes a termination notice clause, this "at-will" status is likely modified to some extent. The specific details would depend on the exact wording in your contract. It could require either party to provide a notice (often 2 weeks, 1 month, or sometimes longer) before terminating the contract. That notice period is intended to give the other party time to adjust plans accordingly. For the employee, it might mean finding a new job; for the employer, it might mean finding a replacement.

Read 1 attorney answer>

Business

Employment Contract

Florida

Asked on Apr 17, 2023

What's the safety policy in an employment contract?

I recently accepted a job offer from a new employer and as part of the employment contract, I need to understand the safety policy in the workplace. I understand that safety policies in the workplace are important for the protection of both employees and employers, but I am not sure of the specific details of the safety policy included in my employment contract. I would like to know what safety policies are included in the contract in order to ensure that I have a safe working environment.

Diane D.

Answered May 2, 2023

Without seeing the contract, there is no way of knowing.

Read 1 attorney answer>

Litigation

Employment Contract

Texas

Asked on Apr 23, 2023

What's the termination clause in an employment contract?

I recently accepted a position at a company and they have given me an employment contract to review. I have been reading through the contract and noticed a section regarding termination. However, I am not sure what the termination clause in the contract states and I am hoping to get some clarification from a lawyer. I want to make sure that I understand my rights and obligations before signing the contract.

Curt L.

Answered Apr 28, 2023

Most employment contracts contain (1) termination for cause, and/or (2) termination without cause (also known as at-will employment relationship).

Read 1 attorney answer>

Labor

Employment Contract

Georgia

Asked on Oct 4, 2021

I was recently let go after complaining about discrimination and targeted. I was termed with a severance package. I want to know if I can renegotiate the severance.

Can I get more on my severance since I was let go after complaining about discrimination to my employer?

Donya G.

Answered Oct 5, 2021

That sounds like it would depend on the reasons you were given for being let go. Did you document your grievances in an email or where they just done by word of mouth? You should consult with a GA attorney that specializes in employment law to assit. All the best Donya Gordon

Read 1 attorney answer>

Employment

Employment Contract

Massachusetts

Asked on Apr 12, 2023

What's paid time off in an employment contract?

I am a recent college graduate and I am in the process of negotiating an employment contract with a large company. I am trying to make sure I understand the terms of the contract, including the paid time off that is offered. I am hoping to get a better understanding of what's included in the paid time off section of the contract so I can make an informed decision about the offer.

Joseph M.

Answered May 12, 2023

Paid Time Off (PTO) is essentially days (or even hours) that the employee is not required to work but the employer still pays the employee for those hours. It can be awarded in a lump sum in advance, or earned and accumulated over time, dependent on the terms of the employment agreement. PTO may be granted in addition to or in lieu of vacation days, sick days, etc, again depending on the unique employment agreement.

Read 1 attorney answer>
See more legal questions…

Need help with an Employment Contract?

Create a free project posting
Employment lawyers by top cities
See All Pennsylvania Employment Lawyers
Pennsylvania Employment Contract lawyers by city
See All Employment Contract Lawyers

ContractsCounsel User

Recent Project:
Physician contract review
Location: Ohio
Turnaround: Less than a week
Service: Contract Review
Doc Type: Employment Contract
Page Count: 3
Number of Bids: 5
Bid Range: $400 - $500

ContractsCounsel User

Recent Project:
Review physician contract for options for termination
Location: North Carolina
Turnaround: Over a week
Service: Contract Review
Doc Type: Employment Contract
Page Count: 13
Number of Bids: 8
Bid Range: $350 - $599
other helpful articles
related contracts
See More Contracts

Need help with an Employment Contract?

Create a free project posting

Want to speak to someone?

Get in touch below and we will schedule a time to connect!

Request a call

Find lawyers and attorneys by city