Issue the correct periods of notice

An employee who has worked for a company continuously for one month or more must receive notice of dismissal/redundancy.

An employee who has worked for a company continuously for one month or more must give notice of their intention to leave.

These notice periods must be included in a written statement of employment particulars which must be issued to your employee within two months of them starting work.

Read Labour Relations Agency (LRA) guidance on preparing a written statement of the main terms and conditions of employment.

Employer notice periods

The minimum legal notice period to be given by an employer is:

• one week's notice if the employee has been employed by the employer continuously for one month or more, but for less than two years
• two weeks' notice if the employee has been employed by the employer continuously for two years, and one additional week's notice for each further complete year of continuous employment, up to a maximum of 12 weeks

An employer can include longer periods of notice in the employment contract.

Note that if you plan to make 20 or more employees redundant special conditions apply. See redundancy: the options.

Employee notice periods

The minimum statutory notice period which must be given by an employee is at least one week's notice if employed continuously for one month or more by that employer. This minimum is unaffected by longer service.

The minimum notice does not apply to casual workers, independent contractors, or freelance agents - see employment status.

Unless a contract states otherwise, notice can be given on any day. The notice period runs from the start of the day after the day on which the notice was given. So, if a week's notice is given on a Monday, the period of notice will begin on Tuesday and expire at the end of the following Monday.

Some contracts of employment contain special terms about notice, eg in contracts of employees who have access to information that you wish to protect from a competitor. See when workers leave your employment.