Does it matter I haven't signed a contract at my new job?

[keepthechangeyoufilthyanimal]

It's a v. small organisation (office job - marketing based)
4 business partners with me and one other person working for them.
I asked for a contract/something I could sign to confirm acceptance of my job when they offered it to me, as I wanted complete security before I handed in my notice at previous job.

The only 'official' paperwork i have is one my boss put together at my request as we were applying for a mortgage while I was working my notice period at previous job and the mortgage co. needed some basic details.
The details on this doc are as follows:
'Dear keep the change...we look forward to welcoming you to xxx company. I confirm below points relating to job:
job title, salary, holiday entitlement, payment of wages, employment commencement date, working hours' with my boss's signature.

But that's it - I have nothing else.
It just bothers me a bit that nothing is written down I suppose.
Because its a small company, everything is very laid back - eg i have had no kind of health and safety training, no idea how long my lunch break officially is, what my notice period would be if I was ever to leave, what the sick policy is (although boss has recently said they are no longer paying sick pay as lots of people [not me] were off in short space of time and the business can't afford it)
The thing that's bugging me is that we are TTC, so if we are lucky enough to have a DC, I'm not sure where I would stand in terms of maternity pay/leave etc.
Also worried that if anything ever went wrong (i dont know what) it would all come back to ...well you didn't sign a contract!

Is this worth worrying about?
TIA

I'm no expert so others will know more, but you do seem to have the necessary in place. There are laws about notice and maternity pay type stuff, as well as minumum requirements for breaks and the like.

Not all contracts need to be written. If you've worked there for a while and you've been paid there is an implied contract as if there was no contract at all, they'd not have paid you! If you've always taken a 2 hur lunch break and no-one has complained or commented, then you could argue that it was part of the implied terms as well if they started to take umbrage later.

As its a small company I suggest you just enjoy working for them and trust that they are the nice people that they seem.

I've had a job with a very small buiness and contract that really would not have stood up to any scrutiny, but it didn't actually matter. I worked, they paid, I was flexible, so were they. I did extra when needed and they saw me ok in leaner times.

Been there, done that...

For your own protection if I was you, I would put it in writing that you need a written contract of employment. This should legally cover (I think) 21 things such as gross pay, annual leave allocation, hours and job description, start date and whether it is a permanent or temp position. If you google it, you can find out more.

It is then a legal obligation on the employers part that they have to do this in order to be seen as fair and reasonable. Failure for them to provide a written contract upon your request will do you a favour if you ever have a grievance BUT prevention is better than cure.

There should be contracts of employment, but in small companies these fall well down the list of priorities.

You should be able to get a basic contract from a google search. Why not download one, take it to employers and offer to draft a 'standard' contract up for them that they can then use going forward with all staff. That solves the problem and makes you look good.

The existence of a contract doesn't affect your basic rights under employment law, which stand, regardless (eg vacation, minimum notice period, etc)

If you are concerned re: rights to maternity pay, etc, you can check if your employer has registered you by calling HMRC helpline.

A written contract isn't compulsory - I have been with my employers for 10 years and still don't have one!

You have a part-written (the letter) and part-verbal (anything else) one. I would suggest you make a note of any conversations you have with manager/emplyer that might be construced as a term of your contract. Nothing formal, just the date, parties to the conversation. You could always cover yourself by emailing the boss/manager confirming the conversation.

BTW - my employer is a solicitors firm! It's like plumbers always having leaky taps, we never sort out for ourselves the stuff that other people pay us to sort out for them!