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Finding the right employee used to be the most difficult aspect of the hiring process. Making the offer
itself was simple: You just dropped a letter in the mail.
Now, however, that friendly letter welcoming the employee on board may be considered a binding contract.
Courts across the country have held, for example, that if a salary is stated as an annual amount the employee's performance will be reviewed in six
months, them it is a contract to keep him or her on that long.
Joseph E.O'Leary, a lawyer at Choate, Hall & Stewart in Boston, advises his clients to include the employee's
starting date, job title, salary, and benefits in an offer letter. But he suggests that salary should always be given in monthly terms. As
to the timing of evaluations or raises, the letter should say. "Your performance and salary will be reviewed periodically." Also, benefits
should not be downgraded, even if company policy changes, unless the letter states that perks are subject to modification.
Some employers, in their concern, have gone so far as to include such statements as "This letter does not constitute
a specific term of employment," or, "This letter constitutes the entire agreement between us, and overrides any statements made during the interview
process." But most lawyers advise against including harsh legalese, which can be off-putting to the potential employee.
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