Editing the active contract vs creating a new one

Two paths

Edit the active contract — for cosmetic fixes only

Use when you're correcting something that was never true: a typo, the wrong manager originally picked, the wrong department code.

1. Employee detail > Contracts tab > click the active contract
2. Click Edit
3. Change the field, save

The same contract is updated in place. No history of the edit is kept beyond the audit log.

Create a new contract — for substantive changes

Use whenever the change reflects a real-world event from a specific date: salary change, promotion, hours change, role change, employment-type change.

1. Employee detail > Contracts tab > New contract
2. Set the Effective from date
3. Fill in the new terms (you can copy from the current active contract)
4. Save

The system automatically ends the previous active contract on the day before the new one starts. Now you have two rows — the old terms (closed) and the new terms (active).

Why the distinction matters

• Statutory calculations (maternity pay, statutory redundancy) need the contract history to find the right reference period
• Finance reporting uses the active contract at any point in time, so historical reports can replay correctly
• Backdated changes create a contract dated in the past; the system re-applies any affected pay runs that are still in draft

When in doubt, create a new contract. It's always recoverable; editing the active one isn't.