Can an employment contract be signed electronically?
HireHive Team
HireHive
HireHive Team
HireHive
HireHive Team
HireHive
HireHive Team
HireHive
The short answer is yes in almost every Western country. As well as employment contracts it’s also possible for employees to e-sign policies and procedures, NDAs, and other HR related documents.
In the European Union electronic signatures come under the scope of eIDAS regulations. In essence, this provides that an electronic signature is legally binding. It differentiates between Simple Electronic Signatures (a simple click to consent for example) and Advanced Electronic Signatures which are more reliable.
Most online platforms for electronic signatures are defined as Advanced. Usually this consists of linking the signer to the document through login credentials or other means, ensuring that the document was not tampered with, the provision of a third party certificate for every document signed, and an audit trail.
In the US very similar legislation was enacted over twenty years ago making electronic signatures legally binding. The E-Sign Act 2000 and the Electronic Transaction Act are the relevant laws.
In many ways electronic signatures are more secure than wet signatures. If a proper online signature platform is used then it’s easier to store, find, and retrieve documents. Nobody wants to be shuffling paper around a filing cabinet. It’s also an easier way for employees to sign their contract making the onboarding process that little bit better for everyone.
If you’d like to add e-signatures to your employee onboarding we strongly recommend taking a look at Agreeable.com.
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Hilary Dempsey Head of HR at Life Credit union
