Our boy started his first job last month. Its not great, but at least its work. It was supposed to be casual work at the weekends to fit in around college, but they offered him some extra hours during the holidays. This weekend they only needed him for Sunday.

Today he brought home his contract to sign.

It contains such gems as:

The company will be under no obligation to provide you with work and there are no regular hours of work. The company reserves the right at its discretion to give or refuse to give work to you at any time and will not give reasons for its decision.

That is immediately followed by:

You agree that regulation 4(1) of the working time regulations 1998 does not apply in your case.

(That really winds me up. I don’t agree with opting out anyway, but while it exists it should not form part of a main contract) Another good bit is:

This engagement will terminate automatically without notice at the end of the last day of the function, event or session for which you have been engaged.

The real highlight is:

Nothing in this agreement is deemed to create the relationship of employer and employee between you and the company nor any relationship of principal and agent nor any other fiduciary relationship between you and teh company.

It all seems less than perfect, but really the boy has no choice but to sign it.

As someone who has just left school, with no work experience anywhere and less than perfect exam results you have to take what is there. You get the impression that if anyone quibbles over any of the contents of the contract the company will just drop you for someone less fussy.

Although Crawley has almost full employment, a lot of the work is in catering, hospitality and hotels, or just plain temping. I am guessing that a lot of it is on a similar basis, proving that full employment on its own is not enough. I think he will just have to grin and bear it, while keeping an eye out for anything better.

Trade unions are often criticised, but without them would all bank workers, factory workers, postmen, printer, teachers and everyone else have similarly worthless contracts which promise nothing and guarantee even less? Even in our increasingly de-unionised society, most of us enjoy protection through legislation which only exists because unions fought for it. We may be taking it for granted – I know I have been – so this document is a good reminder of how uncertain our lives and incomes could be.

I shall remember this whenever the Tories talk about the evils of the minimum wage or other employment right: I think they have a corporate nostalgia for when everyone had such flimsy safeguards, so it helps me to focus on what the whole point of the labour movement is.