Employment Rights
The Employment Rights Standard sets out the minimum terms on which the staff of member organisations are employed within the Velocity Interoperability Network. It was published by the Labour Department of the Velocity Interoperability Network on 6 September 2026 and applies from that date to every contract of employment with a member organisation. A contract may offer more than the Standard; it may not offer less, and a term that does so has no effect.
The Standard is deliberately short. It fixes the floor beneath which employment within the Network may not fall and leaves everything above that floor to be agreed between employers and their staff. The Department checks compliance during its inspection programme and through complaints referred to the Dispute Resolution Service.
The rights. The Standard confers the ten rights below on every member of staff.
- A written statement of terms
- Every member of staff is entitled to a written statement of the terms of their employment within seven days of starting work. The statement must set out the employer, the place of work, the duties, the hours, the pay and how it is calculated, the leave entitlement, the notice period and any probationary period. Staff engaged before 6 September 2026 must receive a statement by 5 October 2026.
- Payment of wages
- Wages must be paid in full on the date agreed in the written statement, with an itemised statement showing gross pay, each deduction and net pay. No deduction may be made that the member of staff has not agreed to in writing, other than one required by the Network's rules on contributions.
- Limits on working time
- No member of staff may be required to work more than an average of 48 hours a week over a period of 17 weeks. Staff are entitled to 11 consecutive hours of rest in every 24, to one full day of rest in every seven, and to a break of at least 30 minutes when the working day exceeds six hours.
- Annual leave and holidays
- Staff are entitled to 25 days of paid annual leave in each leave year, in addition to the designated Network holidays. Leave accrues from the first day of employment and is paid at the normal rate.
- Sick leave
- Staff who are unable to work through illness or injury are entitled to eight weeks of sick leave at full pay and a further eight weeks at half pay in any period of twelve months.
- Parental leave
- A member of staff who becomes a parent is entitled to 26 weeks of parental leave, of which the first twelve weeks are paid at the normal rate, and to return to the same post at the end of the leave.
- Notice
- An employer must give one week's notice of dismissal for each completed year of service, with a minimum of one week and a maximum of twelve, and must give the reason for the dismissal in writing. A member of staff must give at least one week's notice of resignation.
- Equal treatment
- Staff must be treated equally in recruitment, pay, promotion, training and dismissal. Different treatment is permitted only where it rests on a requirement of the work itself.
- Freedom of association
- Staff may join a staff association, take part in its activities and be represented by it in any dealing with their employer or with the Department. No member of staff may be refused employment or dismissed for membership of an association.
- Protection for reporting a concern
- A member of staff who reports a safety concern or a breach of the Standard to their employer or to the Department may not be dismissed or subjected to any detriment for having done so. A dismissal for this reason is void and the Dispute Resolution Service may order reinstatement.
Common questions. The answers below explain how the Standard applies in the situations about which the Department is most often asked.
The limits on working hours and the leave entitlements are set out in full on the Working Time and Leave page. Enquiries about the application of the Standard may be sent to contact@labour.gov.vin; for answers to other common questions, see the frequently asked questions.