Contracts within Industry.

Small job = Small contract.
Big job = Big contract.

Knowing who you're working for
Before an illustrator starts any job they must research and understand the company they may potentially be doing work for. If they agree to do work for a company that they haven't looked in to, they may be faced with problems such as the company not being able to pay them.

There is a service on the government website which lets anyone seach for details about a company. It lets a person find out its office address, previous company names, directors details, if it has been dissolved, when its accounts were filed or due, a history of its files or documents and a person can check if a companies name has been taken, all of these details can be viewed for free. There is a charge of £1 to use the service if a person wants to view details and filed documents such as accounts, annual returns and reports.

Pricing work

This depends on what exactly the job is. The price may be calculated depending on how long it will take to complete and how much money would need to be spent on certain materials, this may be a hourly or daily rate, then this could be calculated as a lump sum.

Copyright laws in different countries
If an illustrator is doing work for a company or person in a different country, different laws regarding copyright may apply, they will have to look into this for the specific country and decide if they want to go ahead and take on the work.

Exchange rates

In the contract, there will be the price that the illustrator will be paid for their work. For example, if the illustrator is working for a Japanese company, it could say that the illustrator will be paid 50,000 Yen which seems a lot of money, where realistically, 50,000 Yen is worth around £280 British Pound Sterling.

Understanding terms and conditions
An illustrator must understand the terms and conditions fully before agreeing to the contract. The words used in a contract can sometimes mean the illustrator may lose money because he/she does not understand what they mean. They may be able to seek advice and be fully aware of what they are agreeing to before they sign the contract.

Where is your work being published?
The illustrator will need to know where their work will be published and in what countries, may that be in the UK or Worldwide.

Royalties
This means that the illustrator will get a percentage or fixed fee for every unit sold. For example if the illustrator is creating a book, every time their book is sold they will get money from it.

Agency clause
Agents can look over a contract if it is needed by the illustrator, to ensure the illustrator isn't missing anything such as words used in the terms and conditions.

Reference
https://www.gov.uk/get-information-about-a-company