HR & Employment
Free Employment Agreement Template (PDF)
An employment agreement is the fuller contract governing an employee's role — duties, compensation and benefits, confidentiality, intellectual property, and the terms under which the employment can end.
Download the template
Free, no signup required. Fill in the blanks by hand, or use it below to fill and send for signature.
When to use it
Use this for a role where you want more formal terms on record than an offer letter alone provides — especially anywhere confidentiality or IP assignment matters, since those obligations are worth spelling out in a signed document, not just assumed.
What's typically included
- Position and duties
- Compensation and benefits
- At-will employment
- Confidentiality
- Intellectual property assignment
- Outside activities
- Termination
- Governing law
How to fill it in
- Check the intellectual property assignment section against the employee's work state before sending — some states (California Labor Code §2870 is the most cited example) exclude an employee's own time/resources inventions unrelated to the business from this kind of assignment, and this template flags that directly.
- Confirm the at-will language matches the default and any exceptions where the employee actually works — this varies by state, and getting it wrong can undercut the very protection this section is meant to provide.
- Fill in the actual salary/rate, pay frequency, and job title rather than leaving bracketed placeholders — this is the document an employee will refer back to if compensation is ever in question.
This document involves employment or workplace-compliance obligations that vary by state and by employer size. It is a general starting point only — not legal advice — and should be reviewed by an employment attorney licensed in your state before use.
Frequently asked questions
Do I need this in addition to an offer letter?
Not always — for many roles, an offer letter alone covers what's needed. This fuller agreement is worth using specifically when confidentiality or IP assignment matters (e.g., the employee will create work product or handle sensitive information), since those obligations deserve to be in a signed contract rather than assumed.
Does the IP assignment clause take away rights to things an employee invents on their own time?
It shouldn't, in a state with an employee-invention carve-out like California's — this template includes a note flagging that issue, but it's worth confirming the final language matches the law in the employee's actual work state before relying on it.
Is an electronically signed employment agreement legally binding?
Yes, under the U.S. ESIGN Act and state UETA laws, the same as any other contract.
Ready to use this template?
Every word is editable before you send — this is a starting point, not a final draft.