ABSTRACT
In this text, implied duties are those terms implied into every contract of employment. The word ‘duties’ is used to distinguish the questions in this chapter from implied terms discussed in Chapter 3. By implied term, this text means terms implied into a specific individual contract because that is what the parties would have expressed if they had thought about it. On the other hand, implied duties are in every contract of employment, irrespective of the parties’ intentions, and can normally only be ousted by an express term. The majority of student texts split the duties into those of the employer and those of the employee. Examination questions may, however, mix the two areas and therefore it would be unwise to know one group of duties but not the other. In addition, this area impacts on others. Breach of these duties may constitute a repudiatory breach and thus a constructive dismissal, and so be relevant to questions on unfair dismissal. Sexual harassment may be a breach of the duty of mutual respect as well as an infringement of the Sex Discrimination Act (SDA) 1975. As such, knowledge of this area will form a good foundation for a variety of questions that may come up on an examination paper.
