talkmagic.co.uk

Hello all,

Just wondering if anyone knows much about notice periods at work and more specifically can the company make you work it out. I've applied for a job, the company seems quite keen to offer me an interview but they don't seem quite so keen on the 3 month notice period that I have to give at my place. Has anyone tried to get out of a notice period before, my manager is well known for making people work their notice to the day.

In a word, negotiate.

Im in the middle of all stuff like that as i type.

Basicaly , it depends on your contract, and the length of service time.

In my situation, Ive been here 11 years, so probably have to give 3 months. But situations being the way they are, ( outsourcing ) i would expect 1 month would be ok.

Like J.T said.. chat to your H.R Dept. in these troubled times, they might welcome the oportnity to save a couple of months wages.

If you have any holiday accrued you can take that and shorten the time before you start the new job. If you're determioned to go then it's silly to make you stay until the last second at the current job, I've known employees who have used their notice period to really screw things up, files got deleted from the computer, 'mistakes' happened with transactions etc. Far better to let them go early and everyone can move on with good grace.

From my experience, the period of notice is so that your employer will have time to find a replacement and you may even have time to train them up before you go. If they've been good to you, view it as some time to pay them back for all they've done for you by making sure your legacy is preserved. If they've been horrible though...

As Mandrake said, any accrued holiday is worth taking to shorten the time, just make sure you don't take more then you've earnt so far this year or you'll find your final pay check a lot lighter than usual!

I was hoping that there's a little loop hole out there somewhere but looks like I'll just have to smile sweetly at my boss and see if he'll let me off with a shorter notice period. I don't like my chances of that though. Oh well, I'll go for this job and worry about it if I get it.

Lady of Mystery wrote:I was hoping that there's a little loop hole out there somewhere but looks like I'll just have to smile sweetly at my boss and see if he'll let me off with a shorter notice period. I don't like my chances of that though. Oh well, I'll go for this job and worry about it if I get it.

Good idea. There are generally no loop holes in standard contracts of employment, which is why I say negotiate when the time comes.

I have had discussions about this before, with HR staff members, and our conclusion was; what is the worst the company could do if you did not work your notice? Fire you?

Obviously if you want to leave on good terms, it probably would be good to negotiate something. Using the minimum terms provided on the ACAS site as an example might reduce your notice period.

How much notice of termination must I give?
http://www.acas.org.uk/index.aspx?articleid=1584

Wow! The state of Pennsylvania, (which isn't really a State at all, it is a common wealth) is called an "At Will State" which means your employer can fire you at anypoint, without notice or time as long as the reason is work related and not because of race, religion, sex, or age, in other words as long as its not discriminatory. And the same is true on the other end you can quit at any time. Other States the employer is required to give a reason, and usually two weeks notice (or two weeks pay). As for quitting, as has been said before, what is the worst they can do? Fire you. Of course by just leaving you earn bad references if somebody checks and you have certainly burned bridges, and you cannot collect un-employment if you quit a position, you have to be fired.

The contractual notice period is part of the contract. While there can be exceptions (constructive dismissal would be one, I think), you can be obliged to stay and work the three months. I take it that this is actually part of the written contract.

In my job, three months' notice is standard. Is it unusual in your line, Becky? If it's normal, then your prospective employer should be expecting it (assuming that you aren't changing to a different type of work).

You may be able to negotiate, but the bottom line is normally that you will have to work the notice period, if required.

judging by the title - i'd have gone for "stomach cramps"....

The worst they can do is not pay you your holiday allowance and (potentially, but quite possibly illegally) fail to provide a reference.

if you've got a pension with them, see if you can work something out pro rata with them?

or say you're being sexually harrassed and threaten to sue them unless you can leave right away, and call it a grand cash in hand and you'll keep it quiet...

It is not illegal to refuse to provide a reference.
It is illegal to provide a bad reference.

actually - you cannot provide a bad reference, you can refuse to give one...but you can't write a bad one...