Help please- meant to sign contract for new job tomorrow

[StarsAtElbowsAndFoot]

Hi, not sure where best to put this so I thought I’d try the Work topic first.

I’ll try and explain as briefly as I can. I’m a teacher at a secondary school. I was recently off work for two months with mental health issues (after a huge crisis in my personal life) and whilst I was off work I ended up applying for another job. A huge part of the reason for this is because my Head of Department has caused an awful lot of issues over the last few years and my work life was very very difficult. The new role is a Head of Department which is obviously a promotion but it’s at a private school so there are downsides to that- lower pay/pay progression/less protected etc.

I’m meant to be starting my new job after Easter. I’ve handed in my notice at my current job and obviously have made a verbal agreement with the other school. I’m signing the contract tomorrow.

But… my current Head of Department resigned on Monday! This means there’s an opening at my current school for Head of Department and I’d love to apply. I know it’ll be stressful but it’s a much higher salary (and I live on my own and have to fully support myself which is getting harder during the cost of living crisis!) and I really want to go for it. This job would also start after Easter.

The problem is, I have to sign the contract for the new job tomorrow. I don’t know where I stand if I do that and then go for the other job, get it and then break my contract? Am I better off being honest and telling the new job that I’m thinking of applying for this one? But if I do that, they might withdraw my offer with them and then I’ll end up with no job if I don’t get the other one!

I really don’t know what to do. I obviously have to have a job as I need to keep a roof over my head. Staying in my current job as ‘just’ a teacher isn’t an option as my employment is in the process of being terminated and they wouldn’t withdraw my notice.

Help, anyone? And thanks for reading, if you made it this far!

Take the new job - have a completely fresh start.

Thanks for your reply. The problem is, the job that has now come up is ten thousand pounds more a year. I can’t not consider such a pay rise.

Take the new job and then apply for the other one. If you get it then inform the private school that you will not after all be starting at Easter. If you don't get it then start at the private school like you are currently planning to. People do this all the time.

You have to put your own interests first. The employer would do exactly the same.

Can you delay signing the contract?

Sign it, apply, cross that bridge if & when you come to it.

Exactly this. Good luck

I've done this recently - signed contract, then a few weeks later was offered a better job.

In this economy you have to put yourself first. If it was a small business that would suffer I wouldn't do it, but in this instance, I think you should sign the contract and apply for the other job.

This

I'm not so up in the world of teaching and maybe someone who knows more will come along, but in 'normal' jobs you are basically totally fine to sign a contract then for whatever reason not actually start the job (if a better offer or whatever comes along) - the most an employer can do in that circumstance is sue you for breach of contract but they have to demonstrate loss, so potentially whatever it would cost them to re-recruit and/or cover the role for whatever period of notice you would have had to give had you started, and in most cases this isn't worth it for the employer as notice periods at the start of employment are very short, like 1-2 weeks so their losses are minimal. So generally I would say it's absolutely worth it to still apply for the 'better' job and just not start the new job if need be (not morally great perhaps but legally fairly safe).

Now as you're a teacher things might be a bit different on the notice front, I assume as standard you have to give at least one complete term's notice and this is the same at your new job/old job (?), so if you resigned on the first day after Easter/start of summer term, you would have to work until the end of the summer and start any new job in the autumn term, is that right? So potentially if you breach your contract with new role they could claim losses for a whole month of supply cover or whatever?

Would your current school theoretically be prepared to delay the start of their Head of Dept role until end of the summer/start of autumn term or is it absolutely essential to them that (if you got the job) you'd start after easter? And if so how are they going to guarantee that as surely if they recruited someone external that wouldn't be possible as they would also be bound by the 1 terms notice rule, or are they counting on an internal recruit (but then there'd still be a vacancy to cover their 'old' job? Also, if you tell new school that your intention would be to start the job, resign on day 1 work one term complete then leave, that's presumably not really a good situation for them so they might be prepared to just release you from the contract?

Personally, like I say with little knowledge of the teaching world, I would keep the offer of the new job warm as long as possible without committing, but if need be sign the contract as you need some job. Apply for the Head of Dept role at current school and see what happens if you are offered it, you might be able to work something out and even if not you are no worse off than you are now...

Sign the contract - apply for the new job - you need to do what’s best for you.

As a teacher, who is also a lone parent and understands the importance of maximising your earning potential but also having to have a job, I'd say sign the contract but if you truly believe in your heart that you want the job at your current school then apply.

If you get it you will be able to work something out, even if it means a later start date and doing the other job for a bit. If you don't get it then you will have a job to go to that you were previously happy to accept. Although the pay isn't as good as the new role, will be invaluable in gaining experience for future roles which means pay progression will come in time.

Sign the contract, apply for the new job.

Yes it might be awkward if you get it but two jobs are better than no job!

Accept the new job and see what happens.
You might not get the job at your current school.

Most employers can't/ won't do anything if you decide to not take the position nearer the time.

You might be in a position to negotiate a higher salary at your new job if your current job counter offer to keep you

Although lots of people sign an employment contract and then decline the job with no issues, technically they can sue you for breach of contract. This very rarely happens though and they would have to prove what loses they have incurred.

If you do decide to sign the contract tomorrow then read it very carefully and look for any clauses specific to this situation.

When will the other job expect you to start though, why is it Easter? That’s not a term’s notice.

This!!!

Don't give up the first opportunity for a job you don't even have an interview for yet! You could end up with no new job at all!

“I really don’t know what to do. I obviously have to have a job as I need to keep a roof over my head. Staying in my current job as ‘just’ a teacher isn’t an option as my employment is in the process of being terminated and they wouldn’t withdraw my notice.”

Take the new job. You say above that your job is being terminated, so if that is the case, I would think it highly unlikely your current school will consider you for promotion.

Honestly op. I don't want to be negative but I think in reality having had 2 months sick leave very recently, you'd be unlikely to get a more stressful promotion in the same school. A bird in the hand etc

If they wouldn't withdraw your resignation, I wouldn't count on an application being successful for another role, unfortunately.

My thoughts exactly

Thank you so much for all your replies- you’ve all made me feel reassured.

I’m definitely going to go for the new job as I’d regret not doing so. I agree it’s unlikely I’ll get it but at least I’ll know then. Before my mental health issues I’d have been a top candidate but I agree that they might not want to give it to me anymore.

I think my biggest concern was the signing of the contract and whether I should be honest with the new school that I’m thinking of going for another job. I can’t delay signing the contract really without making it very obvious and if I did that then I might as well tell them anyway! So it‘s a choice of signing it and saying nothing and if I get the other job, panic that they don’t go after me for breach of contact. Or telling them that I intend to go for another job too and risk them withdrawing their offer. Not sure if they can do that or not!

It’s just such crap timing as this would have been my dream job. And if it wasn’t for my knobhead ex I’d not have been off work and wouldn’t have even gone for the new school job really. Now I feel the odds of me getting this other job are totally stacked against me.

P.S. I haven’t actually asked if I can withdraw my notice. But I’m fairly certain the answer would be no because (assuming they recruit externally) they wouldn’t need another teacher in the department as my current Head of Department is supposedly staying on as just a teacher.