Friends Notice period drama

[steeringwheelishotandwarm]

posting for a friend who is needing a bit of advice ( I think that’s the best way to put it) she’s in a job that requires a long notice period. She detests the job but surprisingly everyone in the workforce loves her and would be very shocked that she hasn’t been happy for 2 years. She has been offered a great job, better pay, exciting, everything she wants but they are needing a pretty quick start. She is worried that they won’t wait out her notice period and the offer will be pulled. She’s then worried that her employer knows she’s been applying for other jobs. Her boss has been good to her but I’ve told her whilst loyalty is great she needs to think of herself.
anyone been in similar position?
what’s your thoughts

Everything is negotiable.

I would look at cut GBT on how to resign gracefully, push the mental health section and how stressed she is, so hinting at going off sick and negotiate a short notice period.

Oh that’s a thought. I keep telling her if she was sick they would have to accept she wouldn’t be there but she has quite a strong moral code and wants to do the right thing by everyone. I think her worst fear is going back to her boss with her tail between her legs if the new employer can’t wait.

Surely the new employer knows what her notice period is? They wouldn't have offered if they weren't prepared to wait.
Notice periods tend to increase with seniority, so unless the new job is at a much lower level, I would assume that the notice period is fairly standard for the level of job.

from what she said earlier I think the offer is subject to her starting sooner, I’ve probably mixed that up a little but she herself is senior and has 3 months notice. This is a fairly new company that need someone asap.

She's going to have do what's best for her now and if that doesn't suit her existing workplace, it's too bad for them. She doesn't owe them anything now.

I'd be highly, highly dubious of any new company which was hiring a new senior member of staff and didn't expect them to serve out their notice period/was pressuring them not to. MASSIVE MASSIVE red flag. A functional company knows how much the right hire matters and is willing to wait.

I would be doing some serious due diligence on the new company. I wanted out of somewhere badly once, ignored my instincts, and ended up very much frying pan > fire.

But can they sue you if you break your contract?

Yes. Companies rarely bother. But they can, and for a senior/important member of staff, they might.

I think 3 months is fairly standard for more senior jobs. The new employer must be expecting it. If they have offered a job to someone already employed, a notice period is bound to be featured!

I was in a similar position. My notice period was 3 months and I twisted myself into an anxious knot about it. But no need to, the new company waited for me . A professional company knows to expect a senior position to be around 3 months notice period. If the new company won't wait , then it is a red flag as a previous poster mentioned.

If they can prove financial loss as a result of a notice period not being worked, they can try.

I was on a 3 month notice period in one job, gave them one month. They weren’t going to replace me, didn’t need to bring in a contract resource to ‘gap’ my notice period… no grounds to sue

Wrote them a strong resignation letter, left after a month, never heard a thing about it.

Oh… and my new company would have waited. I wasn’t going to hang around that long at the old one as we’d just been taken over and the incoming company was shocking.

Yes. Highly unusual but they could. Why doesn't she just talk with them to see if she can leave earlier.