99% of workers do not read their contracts

Only one worker in 166 has ever read their contract and understood its contents, according to a new report.

The research, conducted by Protecting.co.uk, has found a shocking “ignorance” when it comes to staff knowing their rights. The report asked 1,000 employees all over the UK whether or not they had ever read their employment contract in full, to which just 0.6% admitted they had.

93 claimed to have read part of the document, or skim read it, however the vast majority of 909 employees said that they had not read the contents, or at least that they did not remember doing so.

Mark Hall, Spokesperson for Protecting.co.uk, expressed his surprise at the startling figures, saying: “We're stunned. You would have thought that you would read through an important document before you put your name to it, but it appears that for most people that's simply not the case."