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Statutory notice

There is a statutory minimum notice period that must be given to bring a contract of employment to an end, except where one of the parties is entitled to terminate the employment without notice, eg where an employer may dismiss an employee without notice for gross misconduct. The length of the statutory notice period depends on how long the employee has been working for the employer. Where the contract provides for a notice period that is shorter than the statutory minimum, the statute overrides the wording of the contract so that, in effect, the contract is treated as giving the statutory entitlement. This does not prevent the contract of employment from specifying a longer notice period.

The parties can agree to waive their rights to statutory minimum notice, or agree to payment in lieu of statutory minimum notice.

A very limited number of employee groups can be excluded from the minimum notice period mechanism. These are:

1. •

   certain merchant seamen

2. •

   people in the armed forces

3. •

   Crown employees

4. •

   parliamentary staff

5. •

   people