Faculty of Business Environment and Society

1) You are setting up a new company and are going to employ a number of new members of staff. You know that you will be required to provide each of them with a Contract of Employment. Consider the attached draft Contracts of Employment (Documents 1, 2 and 3).
a) Compare and contrast the three contracts identifying those drafting techniques that you consider are effective and suggesting any elements that you consider could be improved in each of the pieces. (50 marks)
b) Based on your comments in a) explain, with reasons, which of the three contracts you are likely to choose to give to your potential employees. (10 marks)
NB You are not expected to comment on the legal content of the agreements.
2) a)You are Julia/Julian Brown. Draft the formal business letter to GreenLake Stores based on the scenario set out in Document 4. (30 marks) NB You are not expected to include any points of law in your letter to the store.
b) How would your answer differ (if at all) if you were to send the same piece of correspondence by e-mail rather than as a formal business letter. Which method do you feel would be the most appropriate in the circumstances and why? NB You are not expected to write the e-mail.

BUSINESS LETTER SCENARIO
You are Julia (or Julian) Brown and you live at 3 Forest View, Marchtown , West Riding, MA4 6GL. Two months ago, you purchased a washing machine €“ Superwasher Deluxe: model no 437 from GreenLake Stores situated at 67, High Street, Marchtown MA39 7HL under an interest free credit arrangement. The total price paid was £550. You paid £50 deposit and the remainder was to be paid in monthly instalments by direct debit from your bank account. The Invoice Number was GLS 39780

The machine was fine on the first two occasions that you used it but on the third occasion the door ed whilst the machine was in use and flooded the kitchen, ruining the carpet. You phoned GreenLake Stores to complain and spoke to a Mr Peter Hail, the department manager. He sent a repair man (Tom Williams) who said the door catch was faulty and Tom replaced the catch. However, the next time you used the machine, the door ed again. Luckily you were in the kitchen at the time and were able to prevent much water escaping. You telephoned Mr Hail again and said you wanted your money returned or a new machine. He offered to send the repair man again but you said that wasn’t good enough. Mr Hail then told you he would have to speak to his boss (he did not say who his boss was) and would get back to you, but he never did. Over the following two weeks you phoned the store but on each occasion the sales staff fobbed you off and you have not been able to speak to Mr Hail again. Finally, in desperation, you contacted your bank and cancelled the direct debit.

Write a formal business letter to GreenLake Stores explaining that you have now cancelled the direct debit and give your reasons in the letter for doing this. Explain in your letter that you feel very aggrieved about the whole affair. You want nothing more to do with GreenLake Stores. You want to return the washing machine but you also want your money back and compensation for the ruined carpet (estimated value £110).