Most employees have a
legal right to a period of notice if dismissed. Many employees will have extra rights to notice under their contract of employment.
There will always be a contract of employment, even if there is nothing written down. Even if the law or your contract of employment does not give you the right to a minimum amount of notice,
you are still entitled to 'reasonable' notice.
In most circumstances, if your employer wants to dismiss you, they must follow special dismissal and disciplinary procedures, laid down by law. Before dismissing you, your employer must:
* send you a written statement, telling you why they want to dismiss you
* hold a meeting with you to discuss the matter
* hold an appeal meeting with you, if you want to appeal against your dismissal.
After the meeting with you, or the appeal meeting if there is one, your employer must make a final decision about what they are going to do, and tell you what it is. If they are still going to dismiss you,
your employer must tell you when the dismissal is to take effect, and how much notice they are giving you.
They do not have to do this in writing, but it would be good practice to do so. Notice of dismissal must be given directly to you and not through a third party, for example your trade union.
If you are not happy with your employer's decision and you think your rights have been ignored, you may be able to take your case to an employment tribunal. You must comply with the dismissal and disciplinary procedure first. If you do not, any future award you get from a tribunal may be reduced. If your employer does not follow the proper procedures, a tribunal may decide they have acted unreasonably. This would mean you would have been unfairly dismissed.
Who has no legal right to minimum notice
The law does not give the following employees the right to a minimum period of notice – but see also under heading 'Reasonable' notice:-
* those employed for
less than one calendar month by their employer. From 1 October 2002, the law gives some employees on fixed-term contracts who have worked for their employer for one month, the right to notice
* Crown servants
* seamen employed on a ship registered in the United Kingdom under a crew agreement
* employees who have been dismissed for
gross misconduct.
If you have been accused of gross misconduct, you may wish to make a claim to an employment tribunal. There is a strict time limit for doing so. You should consult an experienced adviser as soon as possible, for example, at a Citizens Advice Bureau. To search for details of your nearest CAB, including those that can give advice by email, click on nearest CAB.
If you have no legal right to notice, you will still be entitled to 'reasonable' notice or the notice your contract gives you. For more information about 'reasonable notice', see under heading 'Reasonable' notice. However, if you have been dismissed for gross misconduct, you will not be entitled to any notice under your contract, or any 'reasonable' notice. For this reason, it is important to check the real reason for the dismissal.
How much notice should you get
The law gives all employees the right to a minimum amount of notice, except those listed under the heading Who has no legal right to minimum notice. This period of notice is:-
*
one week for employees who have worked for their employer for one month but less than two years; or
*
two weeks if the employee has worked for their employer for two whole years; and
*
one extra week for each further whole year's employment at the date the notice period expires, up to a maximum of twelve weeks' notice in total.
Contractual notice
Your contract of employment may give you more notice than the minimum the law gives you. However, you can never get less than the minimum, no matter what your contract says.
If your contract does not specify a period of notice, you may still have the right to a minimum period of notice because of custom and practice. For example, if everyone who works for your firm has always been given at least three weeks' notice, you would have the right to this much notice.
'Reasonable' notice
If the law does not give you the right to notice, and there is no notice period in your contract (whether written, spoken or through custom and practice), you will still be entitled to 'reasonable' notice. What is reasonable will often depend on your pay period. For example, if you are paid weekly, you could argue that a week is reasonable, and if you are paid monthly, you could argue that a month is reasonable.
If you think you should be entitled to reasonable notice, you should consult an experienced adviser, for example, at a Citizens Advice Bureau. To search for details of your nearest CAB, including those that can give advice by email, click on nearest CAB.
For more information about what notice you should get when you are dismissed from work, see Dismissal and, in England Wales and Scotland, see Notice of dismissal in Employment fact sheets.
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