What about successful candidate:
If you are the successful candidate in the session of interviews (with or without a test) the next step will be for you to be formally offered the post. In some cases you may be telephoned (or, in the case of internal promotion, contacted by intercom), and asked whether you are still interested in the post and, if so, whether you would accept it if it offered to you. If you are and would, then you will of course say so and express your appreciation, and listen carefully to what other information is provided.
The Formal Offer
The ‘formal’ offer, possibly together with the details of the terms and conditions, will probably then be sent to you by post, of by messenger if you are already employed in the organisation (or you may be requested to call at the personnel department).
In other cases you may receive a letter asking whether you will accept the post and, if so, to inform the writer, or another person, by letter or telephone. Procedures, vary considerably from organisation to organisation, and frequently for different types of posts within the same organisation.
Terms and Conditions of Employment
In general, employers will have printed or specially typed sheets of the terms and conditions of employment, covering such matters as wage/salary rates, overtime rates, hours of work, holiday or leave allowance, sickness benefits, pension schemes and other ‘fringe benefits’, if any.
Commonly, you will be sent or given two copies of the document signed by the employer (or a representative), and you will be required to sign both copies ‘accepting’ all the terms and conditions and the regulations of the organisation.
You will then have to return one copy and retain the other one for your records. Do read carefully the document before you sign it. Not only may it contain something different from what you have been led to believe it would, but there is always the possibility that the typist or other person who prepared the document made an unintentional error. If you do not spot and query the anomaly before signing the document, it may be difficult or awkward for you to do so later.
Special Conditions of Employment
In some countries, people wishing to enter certain recognised skilled trades or crafts (mainly technical) may have to serve ‘apprenticeships’, under which training will be provided by the employers concerned. Both the employers and the employees have to enter into apprenticeship ‘indentures’.
Those wishing to enter certain ‘professions’ – like accountancy and law – may, in some countries, be required by the controlling body of the profession to become ‘articled’ to recognised firms, to ensure that acceptable theoretical knowledge and practical experience are obtained.
There are cases in which, in some countries, membership of a specific trade union is required before an employer can offer a post to a prospective employee. This is common where a particular union has become powerful because it represents most or all of those engaged in a certain type of work, like printing for example. In some cases unions have been able to force ‘closed-shop agreements’ upon employers, under which every employee must join the union concerned, whether a particular person wishes to do so or not.
Even the governments of some countries may impose certain restrictions on the employment of non-citizens or non-residents; such restrictions are intended to provide employment opportunities for citizens. Depending on you status and attributes, such restrictions may be in your favour or against you.