These notes should be read subject to the general points regarding implied contract terms noted at Implied terms in employment contracts/a general introductory note .

It is normal for many of the obligations of an employer to his employees to be unspoken and not formally set out in their employment contracts. The law requires employers to give employees a written statement of basic employment particulars (ERA 1996 s.1 and see Statement of particulars of employment ) but no contract will, or could, include every term governing the relationship of the employee and employer. Many terms will simply be "implied".

Some of these obligations will be imposed by statute (eg the Equal Pay Act 1970 implies an "equality clause" into every agreement under which an individual is employed in Great Britain unless there is an express equality clause - see Eq PA 1970 s.1(1) and see notes at Sex discrimination/equal pay and terms of employment/a general introductory note ). Others obligations can be implied by custom, common law or trade usage (eg a right not to work on bank holidays can be implied by "custom of the trade" - see Holidays/public and bank holidays and all employers have a common law duty to provide a safe environment).

A particularly important implied obligation is that of (mutual) trust and confidence. It should be noted however that giving an employee a lawful notice of dismissal in accordance with the terms of his contract cannot of itself constitute a breach of the implied term of trust and confidence (see Johnson v Unisys Ltd HL 2001 ICR 480, House of Lords, and Kerry Foods Ltd v Lynch EAT 2005 on 20th May 2005.

Breach of an implied term, if the breach is sufficiently serious and the implied term is sufficiently important, can amount to a repudiatory breach of contract entitling the employee to to treat his contract as terminated (see notes at Constructive dismissal and/or Repudiation of contract by employer or employee ).