When someone with the legal status of employee is dismissed or made redundant, an employer must give them at least the statutory notice period. This is the legal minimum notice period if they have worked for the employer for at least a month.
This is an agreed amount of time they have to work for their employer after their redundancy or dismissal is confirmed.
Someone is not likely to be an employee if they're:
- an agency worker
- a casual worker
- on a zero-hours contract
If they have worked for the employer for:
- 1 month to 2 years – statutory notice is 1 week
- 2 to 12 years – statutory notice is 1 week for each full year they have worked
- 12 years or more – statutory notice is 12 weeks
Contractual notice
The employer may give more notice than the statutory minimum, but they cannot give the employee less. This is called 'contractual' notice.
Contractual notice periods might be in:
- the employee's contract
- the written statement of employment particulars
- a staff policy
An employee should talk to their employer if they're not sure how much notice they’ll get.
Find out more about employees' rights during redundancy
Possible exceptions to the statutory notice period
There are exceptions to the rules on notice period and pay.
Gross misconduct
If the employer believes the employee has done something serious enough to justify dismissing them for gross misconduct, the employee would not be entitled to the statutory notice period or any payment for it.
An agreement between the employer and employee
The employer and employee can agree to reduce the notice period, if it works for both of them.
For example, an employee might prefer to give up some of their notice period and pay, so they can start a job earlier somewhere else. If an employer and employee have an agreement like this, it should be put into writing, like in an email.
Find out more about when an employee is not required to work their notice period
What to do if an employer does not give correct notice
If an employee thinks an employer has not given them the correct notice period, they should raise this with the employer. It's usually best to raise the problem informally first. Find out more about raising a problem at work.
If they've tried all options to resolve the issue, they might be able to make a claim for wrongful dismissal to:
- an employment tribunal
- county court in England and Wales
- sheriff court in Scotland