Short-Term Employment Contracts

A short-term employment contract is a fixed-term contract whose term is less than one year. They are usually project-based with strict timelines. A contract of a year or more is treated as a regular fixed-term contract.

Benefits

Short-term contracts carry the same benefits as fixed-term contracts: under the Industrial Relations Code, the employee receives the same wages, benefits, and working conditions as a permanent worker doing the same work.

How short-term differs from fixed-term

The main difference is duration. Because the term is short, the contract specifies a project and a time frame, and the employer can end it at term end — or with a short notice if the project ends early or the employee fails evaluation — without retrenchment compensation.

The point no longer drives the old concern about conversion. Under the IR Code, a fixed-term employee does not automatically become permanent after a set period of service; the employer can end any fixed-term contract at term end. See the Labour Codes overview.

Pay

Employees with in-demand skills can command a higher rate on short stints and adjust their pay to current market conditions. In that sense short-term contractors often charge more than longer fixed-term staff.

Most other terms are the same as in fixed-term contracts.