Fill and Sign the Sample Pastor Contract Form

Pastoral Contract Agreement made on the       day of       , 20       , between       of       , (Name of Pastor) (street address)       , hereinafter called the Pastor , and (city, county, state, zip code)       a nonprofit corporation organized and (Name of Church) existing under the laws of the state of       , with its principal office located at       , (street address, city, county, state, zip code) referred to herein as Church . Church hereby contracts with Pastor, to perform the usual pastoral duties and responsibilities of a Pastor including, but not limited to, the following: 1. Pastor is being initially hired for       hours per week for the performance of pastoral duties and responsibilities, including sermon preparation and Sunday worship. 2. Pastor shall direct the ordering of all worship services of the Church as set forth in the Bylaws of the Church. The Pastor shall officiate and participate in the regularly scheduled weekly Sunday worship service, except when on vacation or authorized leave. 3. Pastor shall direct the performance of the Sacraments of Baptism and Holy Communion, as set forth in the Bylaws of the Church. 4. Pastor shall perform, at his discretion, the rites of Holy Union or Holy Matrimony. 5. Pastor shall direct the performance of the rite of attaining membership in the Church. 6. Pastor shall perform, at his/her discretion, the rite of Funeral or Memorial Service, and the rite of Blessing, as set forth in the Bylaws of the Church. 7. Pastor shall be the spiritual and administrative leader of the Church and shall work in a spirit of cooperation with the Board of Directors. 8. Pastor shall direct the spiritual education program of the Church. 9. Pastor shall attend Church social events as part of his work schedule. All expenses charged by the Church for the event shall be waived for the Pastor and his spouse. 10. Pastor will personally perform hospital, jail, and home visitation at his discretion. Pastor shall organize and supervise a pastoral care program to see to the pastoral needs of the Congregation. 11. If there are planned worship services or events the Pastor shall not ordinarily take the following as time off: Easter, Pentecost, Christmas Eve or Day, Good Friday and Thanksgiving. 12. Pastor shall serve as personnel director of all paid and volunteer staff. Pastoral Contract Page 1 of 4 13. Pastor shall serve as Moderator of the Board of Directors in accordance with the Bylaws of the Church. 14. Pastor shall be responsible for the performance of such other duties and responsibilities as may be set forth and agreed to between the Pastor and the Board of Directors. 15. Pastor agrees that he will at all times faithfully and to the best of his ability perform all the duties herein described. 16. Pastor agrees to serve in accordance with the Code of Conduct, a copy of which is attached hereto as Exhibit A. 17. Primarily the Pastor shall work diligently to equip the people of God for works of service, so the body of Christ may be built up until we all become mature, attaining to the whole measure of the fullness of Christ. (Eph. 4:11-13) 18. Pastor shall be entitled to the following leave: A. One Sunday off every quarter. Pastor will ensure that the pulpit is filled during any such absence. B. Two weeks paid vacation annually, dates to be affirmed by the Board of Directors. C. Pastor shall be entitled to the following holidays when they do not occur on Sunday: all federal holidays, Good Friday, and the day after Christmas and Easter. Should the holiday fall on a Church function day or a scheduled day off, Pastor shall receive another day off in its place. D. Sickness. Pastor shall be allowed       sick days per year. Sick days are not (number) cumulative and may not be carried from year to year. E. Jury Duty. Pastor will be given time off, with pay, for jury duty up to three weeks in any given year. F. Emergency Leave. If a member of Pastor’s immediate family dies or becomes critically ill, Pastor will be allowed up to       days of leave with pay. (number) Additional time may be granted, without pay, upon approval of the Board of Directors . G. Sabbatical. After each       years of service the Pastor will be given a paid (number) sabbatical of       days for reflection, education, writing, and renewal. (number) H. Disability. In the event the Pastor shall, during the term of this Contract, become totally disabled, which disability lasts or is expected to last, for a period of at least       months, either party shall have the option to terminate this Contract, (number) after consultation with the Board of Directors. Such option shall be exercised by Pastoral Contract Page 2 of 4 either party giving written notice to the other party of at least       days. For the purposes of this Contract, the Pastor shall be deemed to have become totally disabled if, in the opinion of two or more physicians who have examined the Pastor, he is not able to perform his duties by virtue of illness or injury, and such inability is expected by said physicians to last for       months. The opinion (number) of the physicians shall be presented to the Board of Directors in writing. During any such period of disability, the Board of Directors may, at its discretion, appoint another person as interim pastor. 19. Review. It is understood that open and honest feedback will be shared with the Pastor within the monthly Board of Directors meetings. The Board of Directors will conduct a written annual Board Performance review. 20. Compensation and Benefits. Pastor’s compensation shall be established through the Church’s budgetary process and will be negotiated between the Pastor and the Board of Directors. The Church will base the minimum compensation on the US Labor Statistic for the local area where the Church is located based on the hours of work anticipated. A. Pastor shall be paid every two weeks. B. The Church shall pay the Pastor’s health insurance at a fair and negotiable rate. C. The Church shall pay all normal and reasonable conference expenses incurred by the Pastor for attendance at authorized conferences. These expenses shall include the following: transportation, lodging, meals, registration fees and incidentals. The dollar amount will be established in the budgetary process. 21. Resignation. Should Pastor resign from his duties he shall give a minimum of       (number) day’s written notice to the Board of Directors. If he gives the required notice and has worked for more than one year he will receive all salary and benefits due up to the effective date of resignation. 22. This is an “At Will” employment agreement. Nothing in the policies of the Church or this document shall be construed to alter the “At Will” nature of Pastor’s status with Church. Church and Pastor understand that Church may terminate Pastor’s employment at any time for any reason or for no reason, provided it is not terminated in violation of state or federal law. 23. Severability. The invalidity of any portion of this Contract will not and shall not be deemed to affect the validity of any other provision. If any provision of this Contract is held to be invalid, the parties agree that the remaining provisions shall be deemed to be in full force and effect as if they had been executed by both parties subsequent to the expungement of the invalid provision. 24. No Waiver. The failure of either party to this Contract to insist upon the performance of any of the terms and conditions of this Contract, or the waiver of any breach of any of the terms and conditions of this Contract, shall not be construed as subsequently waiving any such terms and conditions, but the same shall continue and remain in full force and effect as if no such forbearance or waiver had occurred. Pastoral Contract Page 3 of 4 25. Governing Law. This Contract shall be governed by, construed, and enforced in accordance with the laws of the State of       . 26. Notices. Unless provided herein to the contrary, any notice provided for or concerning this Contract shall be in writing and shall be deemed sufficiently given when sent by certified or registered mail if sent to the respective address of each party as set forth at the beginning of this Contract. 27. Mandatory Arbitration. Notwithstanding the foregoing, and anything herein to the contrary, any dispute under this Contract shall be required to be resolved by binding arbitration of the parties hereto. If the parties cannot agree on an arbitrator, each party shall select one arbitrator and both arbitrators shall then select a third. The third arbitrator so selected shall arbitrate said dispute. The arbitration shall be governed by the rules of the American Arbitration Association then in force and effect. 28. Entire Contract. This Contract shall constitute the entire Contract between the parties and any prior understanding or representation of any kind preceding the date of this Contract shall not be binding upon either party except to the extent incorporated in this Contract. 29. Modification of Contract. Any modification of this Contract or additional obligation assumed by either party in connection with this Contract shall be binding only if placed in writing and signed by each party or an authorized representative of each party. WITNESS our signatures as of the day and date first above stated.       (Name of Church) By: By: (Signature of Pastor) (Signature of Officer)             (Printed Name of Pastor) (Printed or Types Name)       (Office in Corporation) Pastoral Contract Page 4 of 4