[3] The Directive requires EU governments to introduce legislation which gives employees within their jurisdiction the right to be notified in writing of the essential aspects of their employment relationship when it starts or shortly afterwards.
Some Member States (but not all) require the conclusion of a detailed written employment contract.
According to the European Commission, "the aim of Directive 91/533/EEC is to provide employees with improved protection, to avoid uncertainty and insecurity about the terms of the employment relationship and to create greater transparency on the labour market.
To this end, the Directive states that every employee must be provided with a document containing information on the essential elements of [their] contract or employment relationship.
[4] Coverage is variable because it is linked to the definition of an employment contract or employment relationship adopted by the relevant member state, and member states could choose to exclude short term contracts (less than on month), short working weeks (less than eight hours per week) and casual labour from the scope of their implementing regulations.