Notice period

[Porcupine32]

AIBU to consider not working my full notice period. Long story short due to an ambiguously worded contract I’ve recently learned that I’m expected to work a 3 month notice period and not the 4 weeks I thought. I’m not a senior member of staff and although I’m the only person in my role full time my company uses multiple freelancers that do the same job. I’ve been offered a provisional role in an entirely new industry, What happens if I simply tell them I’m only prepared to work 6 weeks notice max?

It's usually more of a negotiation.

Many companies want people who have resigned out the door as quickly as possible. No one wants someone around who doesn't want to be there.

That said 3 months notice periods are designed to ensure business continuity - for example, if they have to recruit on the external market they may want you around longer so you have time to do an orderly handover.

If there's an obvious person waiting in the wing for your job - or a coworker who does the same job as you - they may release you much quicker.

When you hand your resignation, follow it up with booking a meeting with your line managers and possibly HR. Take a handover plan with you to that meeting to demonstrate how you can handover your role in 6 weeks. Make it about the work and show you're thinking in terms of their best interest. You can drop in, I'm fully committed to ensuring an orderly handover, it's my top priority and I have a plan here to show how that's achievable in x amount of weeks but I can't lie - I'm excited to start my new role and i think working any longer than a 6 week notice period is dragging it out and it will be difficult for me to remain motivated, can we review my notice period length? Essentially drop a red flag that its in their best interest to release you sooner.

Do your best to end on a positive though.

Good advice upthread. Could share/paraphrase that particular clause? It’s difficult to advise without knowing how ambiguous the wording is.

@Kinko that’s worded so well thank you! It was always my intention to do something like this. When I left my previous company I still finished my work on a freelance basis and intended to tell them I was prepared to do the same. Oddly it came up in a meeting were they were trying to improve the terms of my contract to make it more appealing and I basically said something to that extent in a if we ever cross that bridge type way.

@Arabellla so some of the wording is directly linked to my trade which is extremely small so potentially outing. Effectively when I took the job i queried a couple of points and asked for clarification on this one. My line manager at the time told me that he’d only expect a 4 week notice period. In hindsight it was ridiculously naive of me to take him at his word but we work in a very small trade and having known this person for years I believed him. Well fast forward to now and he’s left and my new line manger is likely to insist on it. I’m kicking myself as I’m usually so meticulous with these things. Our MD was also in the meeting and he suggested it be amended to 6 weeks along with the other changes but it will need the owners approval

@Kinko and our company doesn’t have HR

Well, you signed the contract so it doesn’t matter whether it was ‘ambiguous’, you should have checked. On the other hand, there’s often room for negotiation. My last job, I negotiated two weeks early and the one before that 3 days early. Both times it was because the new job I was going to were keen to have me start quickly and each of the jobs I was leaving had a 2 month notice period anyway 🤷‍♀️

The dreaded 3 month notice policy....my last job had this. I agonised over it for ages and asked everyone I knew what to do.

I tried to negotiate with the company to leave earlier as I had already started with my new company (I worked only 3 days per week with the previous company so it was possible) but they weren't having any of it.

In the end I wrote a resignation letter and said I couldn't do two jobs at the same time effectively and that I was leaving with effect from XYZ. I'd already cleared my things in preparation. I was at least expecting a barrage of emails about how unprofessional I was (which I agree would have been well deserved) but in fact there was absolutely nothing. They totally blanked me from that point onwards. I was worried about repercussions such as letters about charging for temporary cover and so forth, but not a word.

The only thing which happened was they withheld my P45 for two months, I discovered they weren't supposed to do this so I actually contacted the tax office as, of course, I was paying basic tax until it was sorted out. The tax office (I presume) must have nudged them and it magically appeared, sent to my address, no letter or anything.

To be honest I'm glad I left, I couldn't have done three months' notice. Nothing dreadful has come out of walking away sooner. I would advise anyone to offer a date and then go, there is little they can do. You are technically in breach of contract but it would cost so much for them to chase you that, unless you are something high up like the governor of the Bank of England-type, in reality they aren't going to bother.

I think that it seems to becoming more common. My DH's council job was 12 weeks though I think they did negotiate in the end. His negotiation was that he had worked there 6 months and had been assigned about 3 weeks worth of work in that time and felt that by sitting at his computer for 12 weeks doing nothing he felt he was stealing public funds. I'm NHS and they have somehow got away with a 12 week notice period. I haven't signed or received a contract and this is specific to this trust and I am in no way a high earner/senior position. I feel like there should be more rules around this, it feels fairly exploitative of employees especially lower paid ones where it may make all the difference if they get a new job or not.