Notice

What notice is an employee entitled to from an employer?

Under the terms of current legislation, an employee who has been continuously employed for more than 1 week but less than 2 years will be entitled to receive a period of at least one (1) week's statutory notice to terminate their employment, unless there is a contractual obligation to give a greater period of notice which will take precedence.

If an employee has been continuously employed for two (2) years or more but less than 3 years, they are entitled to receive a statutory notice period of at least two (2) weeks to terminate their employment. Again any contractual obligation for a greater period takes precedence.

Notice required increases by a further one (1) week's notice for each year of service up to a maximum of twelve (12) weeks. Again greater periods specified in an employment contract take precedence.

The law allows the employer to specify a shorter period on notice (than 1 week) during the first 4 weeks of service only if this has been previously set down in writing and given to the employee eg in the terms of employment.

Employers who do not require employees to work out all or part of the notice period should make an 'in lieu of notice' payment to compensate them for the consequent loss of all contractual benefits, including pay. Such a payment will normally be equivalent to an 'out of court' payment equal to the employee's damages for not being allowed to work out the notice period. However, in many circumstances an employee may be expected to attempt to mitigate this loss, which can mean that any earnings received from other work undertaken during the notice period may be taken into consideration when establishing what, if any, damages maybe due. As this is a question which can ultimately only be answered by the Tribunal or a Court, you are strongly advised to seek a qualified legal opinion for guidance or initially to seek advice from JACS.

What notice is an employer entitled to from an employee?

An employee who has been continuously employed for more than 1 week but less than 26 weeks is required to give 1 week's notice; more than 26 weeks then at least two weeks' statutory notice to terminate their employment and this increases to 4 weeks' notice after 5 years' service. The employment contract can specify a greater period of notice which will take precedence.

Please see JACS guidance notes for more information