Hi, everyone.
I’m looking for some advice, as I’ve come across some conflicting information online and a bit unsure about what to think.
Last week I was offered a job and received my contract today, but as I was reading through it and getting ready to sign, I came across the section about notice periods for both employee and employer.
It states that after the 3 month probation period, I’m required to give 1 month’s notice (so far, pretty standard), but that they only need to give 1 week if they wish to terminate my contract.
During probation, it’s 1 week for both parties, which again, seems pretty standard, but I’ve never come across this before where it’s such a big difference after probation.
In my previous roles, it’s always been at least 4 weeks for both parties, which increases after around 2 years of service.
Could this possibly be a mistake on the contract or is this a standard practice that I’ve just not come across before?
I would like to have a bit more information before I approach them about it because, although it doesn’t sit right with me, I don’t want to jump to conclusions and come across like I’m a trouble maker.
When looking this up online, it appears that it’s perfectly legal to request a longer notice period from employees than the employer is willing to offer, but it’s generally not recommended to employers by HR consultants and lawyers because it’s viewed as unfair and unethical.
The role itself isn’t overly complex or one that would require a very large amount of handover time, but it’s also quite competitive, so if I was to have my contract terminated, then a week wouldn’t usually be enough time to find a new role.
If anyone can shed any light on this, it would be much appreciated 😊.