The rule about offer and acceptance concerning offers of work

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In contract law there is a rule on ‘offer and acceptance’ which says that when an offer is made and it has been accepted it becomes binding.

Therefore I would like to know if concerning a ‘zero hours contract’ when an employer offers by example a two-week project and the casual worker accepts it is it binding?

I would like to know if the employer has the right to remove a casual worker from the project who has already accepted a project only if there is a clause in the 'zero hours contract' which says that the employer reserves the right to withdraw an offer of work at his discretion even if it has been accepted by the casual worker?

I would like to know if this clause does not exist this means that the employer could remove the casual worker from the project only if the casual worker has frustrated himself the contract by being himself in breach of contract for example because of his poor performance or because the project has been completed?

[northernladuk]

I thought if they entered in to an agreement like that it ceased to be a zero hours contract?

From the wiki on zero hours it says.

A zero-hour contract is a type of contract between an employer and a worker, where the employer is not obliged to provide any minimum working hours, while the worker is not obliged to accept any work offered.[1] The employee may sign an agreement to be available for work as and when required, so that no particular number of hours or times of work are specified.[2] Depending on jurisdiction and conditions of employment, a zero-hour contract may differ from casual work. They are often used in agriculture, hotels and catering, education, and healthcare sectors.

Surely by the two parties entering in to a contract for 2 weeks its not the above?

[SueEllen]

To put it bluntly zero hours contracts are open to abuse so regardless of what's in the contract unless you have the time and money to fight it, move on.

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‘Northernladuk’ says

“I thought if they entered in to an agreement like that it ceased to be a zero hours contract?”

It why maybe some true zero hours contract have a clause which says that the employer reserves the right to withdraw offer of work at his discretion

I heard that ‘zero-hours contract’ do not have a specific meaning in law because there is no statutory definition of them and all depends of the terms of our contract. Therefore it is possible that my contract is not a real ‘zero hours contract’ even if my employer calls it a ‘zero hours contract’

There is the possibility of early ACAS conciliation if I succeed to prove to my employer he was wrong to remove me from the project the first day of the project because there is not in our contract a clause which says that he reserves the right to withdraw an offer of work at his discretion even after it has been accepted by the casual worker

The issue is whether or not according to the rule on ‘offer and acceptance’ I have a case?

[uk contractor]

ANY contractor at ANY time can be removed from any role regardless of contract type with minimal notice! Just move onto a new role its part of the nature of contracting most of us are just seen as disposable resources to fire & hire whenever the client has a need. Many clients consider us the same way they consider paper for the photocopier!!!

[northernladuk]

ANY contractor at ANY time can be removed from any role regardless of contract type with minimal notice! Just move onto a new role its part of the nature of contracting most of us are just seen as disposable resources to fire & hire whenever the client has a need. Many clients consider us the same way they consider paper for the photocopier!!!

Speak for yourself.

[northernladuk]

BIG TEXT STUFF

The issue is whether or not according to the rule on ‘offer and acceptance’ I have a case?

Dunno but pack it in with the text sizes. Have a contract lawyer look over your contract?

Does this discussion help?

http://forums.contractoruk.com/gener...ero-hours.html

or this?

http://forums.contractoruk.com/gener...contracts.html

[WTFH]

Without knowing the details of the contract it's impossible to say. You really need to speak to a contract lawyer to sort this out, but whether that is worth your time and money for 2 weeks of work, I don't know.

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1.
It will not be worthwhile to hire a contract lawyer for a two-week contract. And what I want is to be taken back and not necessary an amount of money

2.
What is stated in my contract is the same as in any zero hours contract i.e. my employer is not obliged to provide me with a minimum level of work and I am not forced to accept it. It is also stated that I do not have any employement status but contrary to other zero hours contract my contract does not contain any clause concerning the cancellation of shifts or the right of the employer to withdraw offer of work at his discretion

3.
In my case the offer and the acceptance was made by emails so what was offered to me and what I accepted depends of the contents of the emails exchanged
In his email my employer makes reference to a project which will be around two weeks long and ask me if I will be available. The fact that he makes reference to the length of the project what he was not obliged to do and just after asked me if I am available suggests that he offered me a two-week project and not only several hours of work and it is what I have accepted

4.
I heard that what has been offered and accepted depends of the expectation of the parties and because in my contract there is no clause which says that the employer reserves the right to withdraw any offer of work at his discretion and he makes reference to the length of the project I expected that I will do the entire project unless I did something wrong.

5.
Another important point is that in my contract it is made reference to “work or hours of work” what means that my employer himself makes a different between “work” and “hours of work”. And because in the email of my employer it is not made any reference to a specific number of hours I think that what was offered to me was not a limited number of “hours of work” but “work” i.e. a project.

6.
It seems to me what is meant in contract law by ‘an offer’ is something of specific i.e. something that we can count and not a vague promise. Therefore either a number of hours of work or a project and because in the email of my employer it is made reference to a project and not to a specific number of hours I thought that I was offered a project

[SueEllen]

You can whine on here and you can whine on other forums but unless you have the financial clout you won't get anywhere. Even if you do and the agency/employer concede you will just be giving some financial compensation which should cover your lawyers fees.