Just read my new contract and half of it works nothing like back home — probation, notice, holiday accrual. What caught you out about local employment contracts, good or bad?
Holiday accrual worked completely differently from what I expected — learned that the hard way while trying to plan a trip too early into the job.
The probation clause reads scarier than it apparently is in practice, based on this whole thread.
Two things surprised me in my German contract. The holiday allowance was more generous than anything I'd had before, which was a nice surprise. The notice period was much longer than I was used to, and it applied to me as well as to the employer. When I wanted to change jobs in my second year, I had to plan the move months ahead, because the new company expected me to start on a specific date and my old contract didn't care. Read the notice clause as if you're the one leaving, not the one being let go.
Same here. The notice period protects you, right up until you get a better offer.
Mine is an assignment, so I had two documents: the assignment letter from my home company and a local contract. They didn't fully agree on holidays or notice, and nobody could tell me which one won. In the end HR confirmed in writing which terms applied. If you're on any kind of assignment, ask that question early, before it matters.
As a caregiver my first contract was very specific about hours, and what counted as overtime wasn't what I assumed. Ask for examples, not just definitions.
Read the notice period in both directions. It's the clause people only read when they're leaving.
My part-time contract in the pharmacy has minimum hours per week that are much lower than what I actually work. I asked why, and it is normal here, but it matters if you need a certain number of hours for anything else, like a permit or a loan.
Olena, that minimum-hours thing caught a friend of mine out with a mortgage application.
Holiday accrual caught me too, same as Emma. Nobody tells you it builds up rather than being there on day one.