Notice periods

[physicskate]

Hi all! I've just tried to resign from my (teaching) job to start at a new school in Jan. I was never issued a contract by my employer, but a job description for a role that is not mine three years after I started. My current job have come back and said I now need to serve six months notice, despite people in similar teaching roles having less notice. How can I convince them to let me go???

I would agree with tava. Otherwise you could find that they start hassling you about your breach of contract.

What other teachers have or don't have really is completely irrelevant to your situation.

My point being atticuslaw, is that they have issued her a JD not applicable to her role title or her role so the written document she has is not applicable to her so the notice period cannot be applied or enforced. At the end of the day you can leave any job without working your notice but the employer may have the right to pursue you for additional costs they sustained for your failure to work the notice. As Atticusclaw states you would need an expert to review this carefully.

Tava advice for next steps is great!

I do understand what you're saying sarah but even if they accept that there is an error in the job title or the description of the role it doesn't mean that the rest of the document is unenforceable .

Hopefully OP when you manage to get hold of them someone will realise that it is all just an error and will allow you to leave earlier. At the end of the day the employer can't force you to stay (because we call that slavery!) so that isn't an issue. The worst they can do is try to pursue you/make deductions for breach of contract. They can only bring a claim against you in response to a claim that you bring.

Thanks for that Tava! Pretty much the path I have followed. Played dumb, begged forgiveness (even though it boggles my little brain how I was meant to know what they are asserting I knew!).

My current head is going to ring the new head tomorrow (head's assistant just got back to me 30 hours after the initial (intimidating) email). I guess they will let me know what they decide and it is all out of my hands?

I did submit a written letter (signed, dated, etc...). Had an email about 10 mins later saying your notice is 6 months and you shuld know that....

I would love to leave on a high note, but hey ho, it is what it is! Thanks again all!!

It's very unlikely that they would persue you for costs/damages. Loss of reputation, chance of actually getting money from you, costs and chance of being found in breach themselves would mean they will sabre rattle but that's all. So really your risk is limited to loss of reference and a months salary. If they do suddenly deduct from your last months pay you should contest it, conversely if they tell you they will deduct is there any reason to continue attending work?

Everything else aside, failing pursuing you for breach of contract there's not much an employer can do if you don't serve your full notice. Working in HR I can say that it's. Ow a rarity that someone does! Legally we can't withhold any funds due or anything, they could refuse a reference but as a teacher I presume this would come from a centralised head office anyway??