Employment Contract - At-Will - New Hampshire

LEGAL NOTICE
This template is for general informational purposes only and is not legal advice. No attorney-client relationship is formed by its use. New Hampshire counsel must review the employment facts, compensation and fringe-benefit policies, and every optional rider before use.

AT-WILL EMPLOYMENT AGREEMENT

(State of New Hampshire)

TABLE OF CONTENTS

1. Document Header
2. Definitions

3. Operative Provisions
   3.1 Position, Duties & At-Will Nature
   3.2 Compensation
   3.3 Employee Benefits
   3.4 Business Expenses
   3.5 Deductions and Statements

4. Representations & Warranties

5. Confidentiality, Work Product & Protected Activity
   5.1 Confidentiality
   5.2 Intellectual Property
   5.3 Restrictive Covenants (Non-Competition / Non-Solicitation)

6. Separation & Remedies

7. Risk Allocation
   7.1 Responsibility for Conduct
   7.2 Limitation of Liability
   7.3 Insurance
   7.4 Force Majeure

8. Dispute Resolution

9. General Provisions
10. Execution Block

1. DOCUMENT HEADER

This AT-WILL EMPLOYMENT AGREEMENT (this “Agreement”) is made and entered into as of [EFFECTIVE DATE] (the “Effective Date”) by and between:

• [EMPLOYER LEGAL NAME], a [STATE] [ENTITY TYPE] with a principal place of business at [ADDRESS] (“Employer”); and
• [EMPLOYEE FULL LEGAL NAME], an individual residing at [ADDRESS] (“Employee”).

Recitals

A. Employer desires to employ Employee in the position of [POSITION TITLE];
B. Employee desires to accept such employment on an at-will basis; and
C. The parties wish to record their mutual understandings and selected New Hampshire wage-payment and employee-protection requirements.

NOW, THEREFORE, in consideration of the mutual covenants herein and other good and valuable consideration, the receipt and sufficiency of which are hereby acknowledged, the parties agree as follows:

2. DEFINITIONS

Capitalized terms used in this Agreement have the meanings set forth below or as otherwise defined in context:

“Base Salary” means the annualized cash compensation set forth in Section 3.2(a).
“Benefits” means the employee benefit plans and programs described in Section 3.3.
“Company Property” means all tangible and intangible property of Employer, including Confidential Information.
“Confidential Information” has the meaning assigned in Section 5.1.
“Effective Date” has the meaning set forth in the Document Header.
“Notice” means written notice delivered in accordance with Section 9.5.

3. OPERATIVE PROVISIONS

3.1 Position, Duties & At-Will Nature

(a) Position. Employer hereby employs Employee as [POSITION TITLE], reporting to [SUPERVISOR TITLE]. Employee shall perform the duties customarily associated with such position and such additional duties as Employer may reasonably assign.

(b) Full-Time & Exclusive Efforts. Employee shall devote full working time, attention, and best efforts to Employer’s business and shall not engage in any other employment or business activity without prior written consent.

(c) Place of Work. Employee’s principal place of work shall be [PRIMARY WORK LOCATION]; however, Employee may be required to travel for business.

(d) At-Will Employment. The employment has no specified term. Either Party may terminate it at any time, with or without advance notice or stated cause, subject to controlling law and any express provision of this Agreement identified as surviving separation. Any change to at-will status must be in an express written agreement signed by Employee and Employer's [AUTHORIZED OFFICER].

3.2 Compensation

(a) Base Salary. Employer shall pay Employee a Base Salary of $[AMOUNT] per [PAY PERIOD], less deductions and withholdings permitted by law.

(b) Pay Schedule. Employee will be paid [WEEKLY / BIWEEKLY] on regular paydays designated in advance. Under RSA 275:43, weekly wages are due within 8 days after the workweek and biweekly wages within 15 days. A less-frequent schedule requires the Labor Commissioner's permission and must be at least monthly.

(c) Written Notice. Employer will provide the written hiring and change notices required by RSA 275:49, including the rate of pay and the day and place of payment.

(d) Bonuses or Commissions. [DESCRIBE THE PLAN, EARNING CONDITIONS, CALCULATION, AND PAYMENT DATE, OR STATE “NONE.”] A separate plan controls only if identified here and provided to Employee.

3.3 Employee Benefits

Employee may participate in benefit plans and leave policies for which Employee is eligible, subject to their controlling terms and applicable law. Employer will make written vacation, sick-leave, and fringe-benefit policies available as RSA 275:49(III) requires. Vacation, severance, personal-day, holiday, sick-pay, and expense benefits that are a matter of practice or policy are wages when due under RSA 275:43(V); the controlling policy must state when they are earned and payable.

3.4 Business Expenses

Employer shall reimburse Employee for reasonable, pre-approved business expenses incurred in the performance of duties, consistent with Employer’s written expense-reimbursement policy and applicable law. Employee shall submit expense reports and supporting documentation within [X] days after incurring an expense.

3.5 Deductions and Statements

(a) Employer will withhold wages only as RSA 275:48 permits. A voluntary deduction requires the specific written authorization and conditions applicable to that deduction; this Agreement is not authorization for a particular deduction.

(b) Employer will furnish a statement of deductions for each pay period in which deductions are made, as RSA 275:49(IV) requires.

4. REPRESENTATIONS & WARRANTIES

4.1 Mutual Authority. Each party represents that it has full power and authority to enter into and perform this Agreement.

4.2 Employee Representations. Employee represents and warrants that:
(a) Employee is not bound by any agreement or legal obligation that would conflict with or be violated by this Agreement;
(b) Employee possesses the qualifications stated to Employer; and
(c) Employee will notify Employer immediately of any restriction that may impair Employee’s ability to perform duties.

4.3 Survival. The representations and warranties in this Section 4 survive termination of this Agreement.

5. CONFIDENTIALITY, WORK PRODUCT & PROTECTED ACTIVITY

5.1 Confidentiality

Employee will use Confidential Information only for Employer's lawful business and protect it from unauthorized disclosure while it remains confidential. Confidential Information excludes information Employee can document became public without Employee's breach, was lawfully known without a confidentiality duty, or was lawfully received from a third party without a confidentiality duty.

5.2 Protected Reports and Communications

Nothing in this Agreement prohibits or requires advance notice or approval for Employee to make a good-faith report protected by RSA 275-E:2, object to or refuse participation in an activity Employee in good faith believes violates law, participate in a government investigation or court action, file or participate in an agency charge, testify truthfully, comply with legal process, or consult Employee's attorney. This Section does not authorize unlawful access to information.

5.3 Work Product

Employee assigns to Employer the Work Product created within the scope of Employee's duties and specifically described in [IP SCHEDULE / INVENTIONS RIDER]. Employee will sign reasonable documents needed to confirm the assignment, at Employer's expense. Pre-existing and excluded material must be listed in [SCHEDULE]. Any broader invention assignment must appear in a separately signed rider reviewed by New Hampshire counsel.

5.4 Federal Trade-Secret Immunity Notice

Under 18 U.S.C. § 1833(b), an individual is not criminally or civilly liable under federal or state trade-secret law for disclosing a trade secret (a) in confidence to a federal, state, or local government official, directly or indirectly, or to an attorney, solely to report or investigate a suspected legal violation; or (b) in a complaint or other document filed under seal in a lawsuit or other proceeding. An individual suing an employer for retaliation may disclose the trade secret to the individual's attorney and use it in the proceeding if filings containing it are made under seal and disclosure otherwise occurs only by court order. The statute's definition of employee includes contractors and consultants.

5.5 Post-Employment Restraints

This base Agreement imposes no post-employment noncompetition, customer or employee nonsolicitation, or noninterference covenant. Any proposed noncompete must appear in a separately signed rider delivered before the employee accepts the offer as RSA 275:70 requires. A low-wage employee earning no more than 200 percent of the federal minimum wage may not be required to sign a noncompete, and such an agreement is void under RSA 275:70-a.

5.6 Return of Property

On request or separation, Employee will return Employer property, subject to lawful record-retention, protected-reporting, and litigation-preservation rights.

6. SEPARATION & REMEDIES

6.1 Separation Notice

Either Party may end employment as Section 3.1(d) provides. The notice should identify the effective date and Employee's current address or requested lawful payment method.

6.2 Final Wages

(a) If Employer discharges Employee, wages are due in full within 72 hours under RSA 275:44(I).

(b) If Employee quits or resigns, wages are due by the next regular payday. If Employee gives at least one pay period's notice, wages are due within 72 hours under RSA 275:44(II).

(c) If Employee is laid off or work is suspended because of a labor dispute, earned wages are due by the next regular payday under RSA 275:44(III).

(d) Employer will include benefit or expense amounts that are wages and due under the written practice or policy described in RSA 275:43(V).

6.3 Remedies

Each Party may pursue proven damages and relief authorized by controlling law or an enforceable agreement. RSA 275:44(IV) governs any liquidated-damages claim for a willful final-pay failure without good cause. This Agreement does not predetermine a prevailing party, establish irreparable harm, guarantee fees or injunctive relief, or authorize withholding earned wages as a contract remedy.

7. RISK ALLOCATION

7.1 Responsibility for Conduct

Each Party remains responsible to the extent provided by applicable law for that Party's own fraud, willful misconduct, and material breach. Employee has no general duty under this Agreement to defend or indemnify Employer. An Employer claim against Employee does not itself authorize a wage deduction under RSA 275:48.

7.2 Limitation of Liability

No contractual cap applies to earned wages, promised benefits, whistleblower, discrimination, or retaliation remedies, statutory damages or penalties, attorneys' fees, or liability that cannot lawfully be waived or limited. Any negotiated cap for a distinct commercial obligation must appear in a separately signed rider reviewed by New Hampshire counsel.

7.3 Insurance

[OPTIONAL: “Employer will maintain workers' compensation and other insurance required by applicable law.”]

7.4 Force Majeure

An emergency does not excuse wage payment or another duty that controlling law makes nonwaivable.

8. DISPUTE RESOLUTION

8.1 Governing Law

This Agreement and all disputes arising under it shall be governed by and construed in accordance with the laws of the State of New Hampshire, without regard to its conflict-of-laws principles.

8.2 Forum Selection

For claims the Parties may lawfully confine to a judicial forum, they consent to jurisdiction and venue in the state courts located in [COUNTY], New Hampshire. Nothing restricts access to a government agency or a forum that controlling law makes available.

8.3 Arbitration (Optional Separate Rider)

Arbitration applies only if both Parties sign a separate rider identifying covered claims, preserving agency access and nonwaivable remedies, allocating costs lawfully, and providing a neutral process. New Hampshire counsel must review the rider under current state and federal law.

8.4 Jury Waiver (Optional Separate Rider)

Any jury waiver must appear in a separately signed rider reviewed by New Hampshire counsel and applies only to the extent lawful and enforceable.

8.5 Injunctive Relief

A Party may request narrowly tailored provisional or permanent relief but must prove every requirement imposed by applicable law. This Agreement creates no presumption of harm or entitlement to equitable relief.

9. GENERAL PROVISIONS

9.1 Amendments; Waiver. No amendment or waiver of any provision shall be effective unless in writing and signed by both parties. A waiver on one occasion is not a waiver on any subsequent occasion.

9.2 Assignment. Employee may not assign or delegate any rights or obligations under this Agreement without Employer’s prior written consent. Employer may assign this Agreement to any successor to its business by merger, consolidation, or asset sale.

9.3 Successors & Assigns. This Agreement binds and inures to the benefit of the parties and their respective heirs, executors, administrators, legal representatives, successors, and permitted assigns.

9.4 Severability. If a provision is held invalid or unenforceable, it will be severed or enforced only to the lawful extent permitted by the controlling tribunal, and the remainder will continue in effect. This clause does not require a tribunal to rewrite a provision or post-employment restraint.

9.5 Notices. All Notices must be in writing and delivered (i) personally, (ii) by certified mail (return receipt requested), (iii) by nationally recognized overnight courier, or (iv) by email with confirmation of receipt, to the addresses set forth below (or such other address a party may designate by Notice). Notice is effective on the date of receipt.

Employer Notice Address:
[CONTACT NAME / TITLE]
[STREET ADDRESS]
[EMAIL ADDRESS]

Employee Notice Address:
[EMPLOYEE NAME]
[STREET ADDRESS]
[EMAIL ADDRESS]

9.6 Integration. This Agreement, together with any exhibits, schedules, and Employer policies incorporated by reference, constitutes the entire agreement of the parties concerning its subject matter and supersedes all prior or contemporaneous understandings.

9.7 Counterparts; Electronic Signatures. The Parties may sign counterparts and may use an accepted electronic-signature process to the extent they consent and applicable law permits.

10. EXECUTION BLOCK

IN WITNESS WHEREOF, the parties have executed this Agreement as of the Effective Date.

Employer:
[EMPLOYER LEGAL NAME]

By: _______________________________
Name: [AUTHORIZED SIGNATORY]
Title: [TITLE]
Date: _____________________________

Employee:

___________________________________
[EMPLOYEE FULL LEGAL NAME]
Date: _____________________________

EXHIBIT A

Job Description / Performance Standards
[Attach detailed duties, KPI benchmarks, and any applicable sales quotas.]

EXHIBIT B

Optional Restrictive-Covenant Rider
[If a restraint is proposed, attach a separately signed rider that complies with RSA 275:70 and 275:70-a and has been reviewed under current New Hampshire law.]

Sources and References

• RSA 275:42 — wage definitions
• RSA 275:43 — pay frequency and benefits treated as wages when due
• RSA 275:44 — final-wage timing
• RSA 275:48 — permitted wage deductions
• RSA 275:49 — written pay, benefit-policy, and deduction notices
• RSA 275:70 — preacceptance disclosure of a required noncompete
• RSA 275:70-a — low-wage employee noncompete prohibition
• RSA 275-E:2 — whistleblower protection
• New Hampshire Department of Labor — Wages and Work Hours FAQs
• 18 U.S.C. § 1833 — trade-secret immunity and notice

This template is for informational purposes only and does not constitute legal advice. New Hampshire counsel must review and customize it before use.