Probation extended. Am I screwed?

Hi @Meme161 it might be best to start a new thread for this. Hooe everything works out!

Hi everyone,
I wondered if someone can help me out, I started a degree apprenticeship in November and the actual university part of things start in April.
There were 3 of us recruited and put in different teams to have rotations for 3 years to learn as much as possible, the team I started in didn’t know they will be getting an apprentice until 2 days before I started and the line manager I was assigned unfortunately got a cancer diagnosis which meant my first 2months I received barely any training.
I was then passed on to a more senior manager and received more experience and training in the 3rd month and started working on projects, keeping in mind I have never had a corporate office role beforehand.
i had my probation review meeting today which none of the other apprentices have had yet and my probation was extended 3 more months. This makes me feel really demotivated and I feel a bit penalised for the rocky start. Should I be worried? :(

If they had made up their minds, they would have let go of you already.
Extending probation is definitely to see whether you can sustain the improvement.

Zombie thread.

@Mw270977 it'd be better to start your own thread, otherwise people will reply to the OP which won't be so useful for you.

Had same - met all the probation targets, excellent feedback from colleagues -poor manager - he does this to everyone to keep them on their toes. Reality is I’m not spending another 3 months on 1 weeks notice so I’ll look for another job. What usually happens at this company is ppl leave b4 he then passes them. High staff turnover and that’s why. U.K. is littered with poor managers just now sadly. Look for a better job with a better company with a better induction

Hi my daughter started an apprenticeship on April with the local government authority.
She was put on probation and this was extended further.
There have been issues as she suffers from social anxiety and has medication.
The big boss isn't very nice by what I'm hearing
Sge is only 17.
She didn't attend school in the last 2 years through bullying so gas found work environment different
One minute thry tell her she doing well (the union rep) thrn the next say they aren't happy with her.
There is another apprentice there who can't do no wrong. She had a meeting with ger apprenticeship tutor and the mentor from work yesterday abd her course work is ahead.
The mentor then said to her if you were not with this council you would be out of a job
They did send her to occ health to get councelling but didn't need it for the job but are aware of the medication
Her meeting is the 15th of this month abd she's terrified age gonna lose her job.
I think she doing really well and have seen a huge change in her since working there
The union rep is going in with her as he did last time.
She gets in bother if she moves away from her desk or going to the toilet even.
I'm just wondering if an apprentice can get the sack if thry are saying course work is going well.
She don't know whether she coming or going
Thrn another apprentice told her that the big boss wants her out as he don't like her

I'm a manager and have extended several people's probation periods. Usually it was because 3 months just wasn't enough time to tell whether they were capable of the job - often it takes a few weeks to get started so you're only judging on 3 or 4 weeks' effective work. Only once have I then not continued employment (and that person readily admitted they were not up to the role); in every other case they've gone on to permanent employment with us.

In my experience it says more about them than it does about you.

When it happened to me it was about a company that was apparently all about 'always-on performance culture' flexing its muscles and trying to be seen to push people to work harder. They genuinely seemed to think that I would find it motivating.

Of course, it sometimes backfires because some people respond well to that kind of stick treatment and some don't.

My probation period was extended in my current job. There was one particular person I worked with who really didn't like me and used to complain about any slight mistake I made - which of course made me very anxious and more likely to make mistakes...... And mistakes, in this person's eyes, meant anything that wasn't done exactly in the way they wanted it done rather than actual errors - if you know what I mean. However I did get through my extended probationary period and have now been in the job for 8 years - doing very well thank you!

Extended probation means the opposite. They like you and want to keep you on but you haven't ticked enough of the boxes yet to say you have passed probation. If they wanted you gone they could have just said failed and that would be that.

Please don't worry.

Googled being put on extended probation and a lot of cases seem to be about getting rid of people easily. However, surely they could have sacked me today if they really wanted to?

You need to make sure you google UK-only employment law otherwise your search results could be a melting pot of US, UK +++

If you are keen to secure your employment I would document a timeline of things that have happened to date that you believe you weren't supported on. "Throwing you in at the deep end" should not substitute support and training. Use your account during the probation meeting to discuss things you found difficult. Highlight that you aren't using excuses, rather you need to ensure they are aware of areas you had challenges with as a new starter.

Remember that by extending your probation they are potentially withholding on full benefits such as a longer notice period (you'd stay on 1 weeks notice either way, which isn't ideal) plus any benefits you may earn such as health cover etc. Might be worth checking the implications just so you know what this means.

Also it would be worth asking for a plan of things you can focus on so you have specific objective targets to aim for, to pass probation.

I’m a manager who extended someone’s probation because we weren’t totally sure they had the skills we’d thought - but we did keep them on full-time after that. So it does happen!

Oh and th e new job was just a maternity cover. That's how much I hated the last one

Yep mine was extended and I was effectively put on a performance plan at a temp job. I then got a new job (hated the one I was in) and gave them my notice to say I wanted to leave at the end of my temp contract, to which I was told they'd just made me permanent and I was too late
I worked my longer notice and left and have been in the new job for eight years now, I love it.

I have known many people have their probation period be extended then go on to long service. I have also known extended probation backfire on the company when the probationer decided that the job wasnt for them and left only having to give a week's notice.

Hi op if they wanted rid of you they would have ended your employment. They are not yet confident that things are right so have extended the probationary period. Given what you've said it sounds positive to me just make sure that the next 4 weeks are like the last 4. Sounds like they know training was lacking too x

It's usually because after then a longer notice period kicks in, but on probation you can be sacked with a week's notice.

Don't forget they are also on probation with you. They've had a better four weeks, but need to pull their socks up after forgetting to train you at the beginning.

Given that employers can get rid of staff with under 2 years service for no reason, surely passing or not passing probation is irrelevant?

Its quite normal to extend probation if you have had shaky weeks near then end but show promise. I work in HR and we recently extended probation for two staff - more so as the company they worked for transferred to us half way through their original probation so we didn't feel they had been given enough guidance and a chance to improve. 1 passed and 1 decided to look for another job and left.

Listen to what they have to say and work hard on improving on the areas they feel are not working.

Dhs colleagues probation was extended then he was fired. He became increasingly argumentative (which isn’t good on probation) and wasn’t doing several parts of his job therefore it was probably beyond his capacity.... or he was lazy.

Good luck with your job. I hope it works out. They want to give you a chance and you’ve shown improvement, which is good.

I only know of one person who's probation got extended and who was then fired/asked to leave. But they didn't even try to learn the job, made the same mistakes repeatedly, they even admitted they didn't care. So unless you're like that you should be fine.

Depends if they have a habit for it. One job I had probation was extended 4 times, annually. Each time with the promise of being made permanent the next year. Turns out they were skint, but I was good, so they kept me on, secretly hoping to find someone as good as me, but cheaper. I left in the end for a permanent contract on more money elsewhere.

I'm not the only one they have done this to, either.

As an employer/manager I wouldn't recommend anyone was put out of a job unless I was certain it was beyond them and would be even with training etc - I would also make sure that I had done my part in training, support etc before taking any step to put someone out of work. I just couldn't morally do it, but there is also the extra time/financial cost in recruiting someone else.
Extending probation isn't great but it means they are giving you a chance to turn it round. If they didn't want to keep you, they'd have terminated you now rather than extended your probation.
Also, probabtion periods are not really such as issue in terms of security as until you've done two years service employers can terminate employment much more easily. That is always a risk to consider when moving jobs - it's not really secure for two years (sorry) but they are giving you a chance. Good luck - you say you're doing well now so I'm sure it'll work out fine. Fingers crossed for you.

I have extended many probation in my time as a people manager. The reason usually comes down, it's not being great, but we want to keep the person because they have shown they can be good.

Normally it's a few shakey early weeks, but the recent weeks have been good.

In most places I work, an absence would mean an automatic extension.

But of you have improved in the last few weeks I would want to keep you. 3 month probabtions are so short and I am not a fan.

What sort of job is it?

At one job colleagues probations were extended because the company didn't know whether they could afford to keep them or not. The company were expanding but didn't know if they would get enough clients to cover. Everyone was kept on after another that.