The legal and financial architecture of being employed. Contracts of employment. Payslips and what’s on them. Tax basics (income tax, National Insurance, tax codes). Pension auto-enrolment. Statutory rights — minimum wage, holiday entitlement, sick pay, parental leave, protection from discrimination (Equality Act 2010), reasonable adjustments. What to do when something is wrong — informal conversation, formal grievance, ACAS, employment tribunal.
What this includes
- Contracts of employment — permanent vs fixed-term vs zero-hours; what to read in the offer; what to negotiate
- Payslips — gross and net pay; deductions; tax codes; pension contributions
- Tax basics — Personal Allowance, basic / higher / additional rate; National Insurance; how PAYE works; Self-Assessment for the self-employed
- Pension auto-enrolment — what it is, why it matters, how to opt out (and why most learners shouldn’t)
- Statutory rights — minimum wage / National Living Wage; statutory holiday; sick pay; parental leave; whistleblowing protection
- Equality Act 2010 — protected characteristics; reasonable adjustments; what to do if discriminated against
- Health and safety at work — basic legal framework; right to a safe environment; how to raise concerns
- Trade unions — what they are, how they work, the right to join
- What to do when things go wrong — informal raise; written grievance; ACAS Early Conciliation; employment tribunal route
Tested by
- ASDAN Employability
- ASDAN Workright
- FS Maths L2 (payslips, percentage tax, pension contributions are functional-maths content)
Cross-curriculum links
- Life and Work — Financial Literacy (significant overlap with payslips, tax, pension)
- Life and Work — Citizenship (statutory rights, Equality Act, voting, public protections)
- KS4 Maths — Number (percentage calculation; gross / net pay)
- KS4 Maths — Ratio, proportion, and rates of change (pay rates, hourly to annual conversion)
- GIGF — Module 3: Estimating and Cost (pay rates as cost; charge-out rates)
Suggested evidence types
- Annotated payslip (real or anonymised mock)
- Contract-of-employment annotation (real or sample) — flagging clauses to negotiate, clauses to question, clauses to accept
- Tax-and-NI calculation worked example
- Reflection on a workplace right the learner has exercised, or could have exercised