Notice period for job application: What is an employment notice period?

What Does “Notice Period” Mean on a Job Application?

When job seekers resign from their current position, they are not relieved immediately. Instead, they have to serve a “notice period.”

The notice period is the number of days between your resignation and departure from your current company. Employers ask about your “notice period” on job applications to know how long you need to serve in your current organization before you can jump ship.

By asking this question, employers make sure that if you clear the interview process, you start working as soon as the notice period allows you to.

What Is the Typical Notice Period?

Your employment contract usually specifies the details of your notice period. Typically, you will have a one-week notice period after submitting your resignation if you have worked as an employee for more than a month but less than two years.

You are entitled to an additional week’s notice for every continuous year between 2 and 12 years. At the same time, employers must provide at least a 12-week notice period for employees who have worked at the company for more than 12 years.

The length of notice may also vary based on your position in the company. For example, if you hold a highly significant role, you may need more time to train a candidate who will replace you.

Can My Notice Period Affect My Job Application?

If the job application mentions keywords like “work immediately” or “as soon as possible,” the recruiter might be reluctant to hire candidates with long notice periods as they expect to fill this position quickly.

However, a notice period of one or two weeks is usually not considered a deal-breaker. How much notice is tolerated by the employer depends on the position and profile of the candidate.

Why Is a Notice Period Important For Prospective Employers?

There are multiple reasons why your prospective employer might ask about your notice period:

• They want to know your availability to ensure you can start the interview process on time.
• There is a labor shortage, and they must fill the position ASAP.
• They want to know how disposable you are. If can get replaced within a few hours, it indicates that you are not essential to the operation of your current company and that you perform low-complexity tasks.

Note that it is terrible practice for HR to ask about personal information, such as your current notice period. Ideally, HR should ask you to fill out your availability instead.

Why Is a Notice Period Import For Your Current Employers?

When you resign, the notice period allows your employer to prepare and find someone who can take over your role in the company. A notice provides your company sufficient time to process your resignation, create a job advertisement, examine applications, and interview candidates for the position. It also gives your employer a chance to delegate your tasks to your co-workers and plan for your absence, especially if your position is not yet filled by the time you leave.

Notice periods ensure a smooth transition of duties and responsibilities within your workplace. Furthermore, a notice period lets you maintain a positive relationship with your employer. That is because you may need their recommendations when you apply for future positions.

Final Words

When filling up a job application form, you might be asked about your current notice period. Typical notice periods that are not a deal-breaker on job applications are one week’s notice and two weeks’ notice. However, long notice periods might hurt your application for jobs that need to hire immediately.

Remember that knowing that you will soon be leaving your company does not permit you to act unprofessionally during your notice period. Instead, you should maintain a good working ethic and remain focused on your work. In addition, your continued willingness to help allows you to leave an excellent lasting impression on your employer and colleagues.

Similar Questions Asked by Employers

• What Should I Put for “Date Available” on a Job Application?
• What Does “Most Recent Employer” Mean on a Job Application?
• What Does “Place of Residence” Mean on a Job Application?

What is a notice period? | A Definitive Guide

What is a notice period?

Put simply, it’s the agreed amount of time you must continue to work after resigning from your job. Or, if you are asked to leave the company for whatever reason, this is the time that you are expected to continue to be employed, and crucially, paid for.

This time is known as the ‘notice period’. The more senior the role, or the longer your period of service, the longer this period may be. Standard notice is 30 days, if you are a Director, for example, it may be 3 months or more.

How long is my notice period?

So, what is your notice period? The length of your notice period should be detailed in your offer letter and/or contract of employment and/or your employee handbook (if you have one).

The notice period works both ways – whatever amount of time you have to give the employer, they have to give you unless something different is specified in writing. The minimum notice period, even if it’s not written down anywhere, is 1 week, as long as you have worked for a month. The notice period normally runs from the next day after you notify the company of your intention to leave your job. So, the answer to the question, “What is the notice period you need to give your current employer?” is the same number of weeks that they must give you.

Garden or Gardening Leave

After you have been asked to leave, your job has been made redundant or you have resigned from your role, you may be put on ‘garden leave’ or ‘gardening leave’ – this means you are still employed, and still entitled to all your contractual benefits, but don’t go into the office or carry out any further work.

Often, this will happen if you are leaving to join a competitor, for example, in case you take company information with you or contact existing clients, while still working for your existing company. It may be for security reasons or because your employer they don’t want to risk you not performing at your best. Whatever the reason, you should get full pay and benefits while you are on gardening leave – for your full notice period.

If you have company equipment, a mobile phone, a laptop, etc. your employer will often ask for these back – if you have a company car, they can’t, as it’s a benefit. (Technically so are the phone and laptop, so a discussion should be had if you really wish to keep them for your notice period – but a reasonable employee might surrender these if they aren’t needed anymore).

Payment in lieu of notice

If your employer wishes you to leave immediately, they can ask you to do so provided they pay you the full amount you would have received should you work your notice, plus any extras. ‘Pay in lieu of notice’ may be specified in your contract in which case they can ask you to leave immediately but they must still pay you in full.

This doesn’t mean you can be sacked with no disciplinary, all employment laws still apply, of course. If you resign, they can ask you to go immediately and pay you in lieu of your notice period. You will also receive any unused holiday entitlement as pay (note that this may also be deducted if you have used more than you have accrued).

Redundancy notice periods

This is a separate issue, and minimums do apply but they are more clearly defined if you are made redundant.

The statutory redundancy notice periods are:

• At least one week’s notice if employed between one month and two years
• One week’s notice for each year if employed between two and 12 years
• 12 weeks’ notice if employed for 12 years or more
• Check your employment contract or employee handbook. Your employer can give you more than the statutory minimum, but they cannot give you less.

Acas (the Advisory, Conciliation and Arbitration Service) is a very useful public body of the UK Government – they have lots of employment advice on their website, or you can call them on 0300 123 1100 if you’d rather talk to someone.

Restrictive covenants

These are the ‘terms and conditions’ of you leaving the business. Your contract may well state that you cannot work in a similar field, or for one of the company’s competitors for a while – typically 6 months, but can be more. These are ‘restrictive covenants’. If you break them, the company could take you to court.

NOTE: You should seek advice from a legal representative if you are considering breaking any restrictive covenants.

Some would argue that a covenant can’t stop you from doing your stock in trade – if you’re a trained carpenter and you leave one job then it could be seen as unjust to stop you from working as a carpenter for a competitor – but, always best to get advice on legal matters, perhaps try Citizens Advice for free guidance, or seek out an employment law specialist.

My employer hasn’t given me enough notice

If your current employer should try to give you less notice than you believe you are entitled to, contact them informally in the first instance to try to resolve it, it might just be a genuine error or miscommunication along the way.

If the matter isn’t then resolved, perhaps use the company grievance procedure, if there is one. If this still does not resolve it then you may have to take it to an Employment Tribunal, again Citizens Advice or Acas are specialists in this sort of issue.

Indeed, if you are set on going to a tribunal you must go to Acas first to inform them of your decision. They can then offer the chance to settle the disagreement using their Early Conciliation service – if this doesn’t resolve it, then you can take legal action via Employment Tribunal.

What happens if I don’t give my employer enough notice?

The flip side of the coin, is you not giving enough notice to your employer, in which case they can take YOU to court.

Again, they should try and resolve it informally with you first, it may just be an error or miscalculation on your part or a disagreement over the actual notice period required. If it can’t be resolved and you leave without enough notice, they can take you to court for damages.

For example, they may have to hire someone to cover your role for the remainder of your notice period.

Can I shorten my notice period?

There are several possible ways to effectively reduce your notice period.

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The first is to ask nicely. You can’t expect to be paid for 30 days’ notice if you only work 20, but your employer may be happy to oblige if you’re leaving on good terms.

Another way is to take holiday leave that you have accrued but not yet used; for example, by taking 5 days’ leave at the end of your notice period you will effectively be working a week less.

There are other ways to shorten your notice. If your employer has breached your employment contract, you can terminate your contract without notice. Or, if your employer gives notice of dismissal, you could leave at an earlier date by countering.

Can I challenge a garden leave request?

Garden leave sounds great – but it can be a real nuisance. You can’t go into the office and in fact, you can’t work anywhere until your notice period is completed and you leave the job. You can look for another job if you don’t have another one already. If you do have another job, then you need to just accept the garden leave and relax.

However, if you aren’t going to the competition, it’s worth asking your employer to waive the gardening leave. After all, there’s not much damage you could do to the business under the circumstances.

But, if you ARE joining a competitor,  and refuse to go on garden leave and start with the new company, your current employer could sue you for damages.

Unless it’s stated in your contract of employment, your employer cannot legally require you to go on garden leave. If they do insist, you can claim breach of contract and that you have therefore been a victim of ‘constructive dismissal’. This is where an employee becomes entitled to resign after a serious breach of contract by the employer. The employee considers themselves ‘dismissed’ and can now take the employer to court or tribunal.

Examples of contract breaches are:

• A salary reduction or threatening one
• Alleged poor performance, with no evidence
• ‘Unreasonable’ disciplinary proceedings
• Changing the nature of your job completely
• Changing working hours without approval
• Harassment at work
• Bullying at work
• Overwork or work-related stress that hasn’t been suitably addressed by the employer
• Not making reasonable adjustments for workers with disabilities

How much notice should I give during my probationary period?

If you wish to hand in your resignation during a probation period then the notice period is often less, it may be just one day. Again, this should be covered in your contract, if not, you could ask the HR team or your line manager, if you’re going to resign regardless.

If not, then the statutory period could be considered just one week. If you’re leaving on good terms, or wish to, it’s best to be flexible and discuss the company’s requirements, you might not want to leave them in the lurch.

What is your availability?

If you’re asked this in a job interview, the answer is basically the duration of your notice period, as once you state that you are leaving, and formally resign, your notice period begins.

We have answers in another article on how to answer common interview questions.

We hope this article has answered all of your questions, and more, about notice periods.

If you’re ready, then find out how to hand in your resignation and leave your job, but make sure you have an up-to-date CV ready to go, use our guide on how to write your CV in 2022 and don’t forget you will need a tailored cover letter for each job application, too.

Deadline for notification of employment of a former civil servant \ Acts, samples, forms, contracts \ Consultant Plus

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A selection of the most important documents upon request The notice period for the employment of a former civil servant (regulations, forms, articles, expert advice and much more). nine0015

• State Service:
• 79 FZ CHANGE
• Autobiography of a civil servant
• Autobiography for civil servants
• Act of a personal file of civil servant
• Anti-corruption prohibitions
• more …

9000 9000 when applying for a job

Judicial practice : The deadline for the acceptance of the former civil servant

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Selection of court decisions for 2021: Article 12 “Restrictions imposed on a citizen who held a position in a state or municipal service when he concludes an employment or civil law contract” of the Federal Law “On Combating Corruption” “In violation of the requirements Article 12 of the Federal Law of December 25, 2008 N 273-FZ “On Combating Corruption” Director General of MIRA LLC FULL NAME18, by order of June 1, 2019year, who hired a former state civil servant FULL NAME19 in the company, sent a corresponding notice to the former place of work of the latter in February 2020, that is, ten months after the statutory period, which resulted in the employer (employer) not receiving the necessary for purposes of this law information for a long time. ”

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“Labor Code of the Russian Federation” “Dated December 30, 2001 N 197-FZ
(as amended on December 19, 2022)
(as amended and supplemented, effective from January 1, 2023) The employer when concluding an employment contract with citizens who filled positions in the state or municipal service , the list of which is established by the regulatory legal acts of the Russian Federation, within two years after their dismissal from the state or municipal service, is obliged within ten days to report the conclusion of such an agreement to the representative of the employer (employer) of the state or municipal employee at his last place of service in the manner established by the regulatory legal acts of the Russian Federation ation. nine0015

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Federal Law of 25.12.2008 N 273-ФЗ
(as amended on 28.12.2022)

“On Combating Corruption”4. The employer, when concluding an employment or civil law contract for the performance of work (rendering of services) specified in part 1 of this article, with a citizen who has held positions in the state or municipal service, the list of which is established by regulatory legal acts of the Russian Federation, within two years after his dismissal from the state or municipal service is obliged within ten days to report the conclusion of such an agreement to the representative of the employer (employer) of the state or municipal employee at his last place of service in the manner established by the regulatory legal acts of the Russian Federation. nine0015

Clarification of the current legislation and legal education

According to Article 37 of the Constitution of the Russian Federation, labor is free; Everyone has the right to freely dispose of their abilities to work, to choose the type of activity and profession. nine0015

According to Art. 80 of the Labor Code of the Russian Federation, an employee has the right to terminate an employment contract with an employer at any time, both concluded for an indefinite period and a fixed-term employment contract, by notifying him of this in advance in writing.

Termination of an employment contract at one’s own will does not depend on the will of the employer. The current legislation does not provide for circumstances due to which the employer has the right to refuse the employee to terminate the employment contract on this basis. nine0015

The will of the employee to terminate the employment contract must be expressed in his application, drawn up in writing, which must be provided to the employer.

The only requirement for an employee to freely resign on his own initiative at any time is the obligation of the employee to notify the employer of his dismissal.

As a general rule, the notice period is two weeks before the day of dismissal. For employees who have been placed on probation upon hiring (during the probationary period), who work under fixed-term employment contracts concluded for a period of less than two months, as well as for employees involved in seasonal work, the notice period is three days. nine0015

On the contrary, for the head of the organization, employees of internal affairs bodies, a longer notice period for early termination of the contract is set – one month. For employees working for an employer – an individual, the notice period is determined by the employment contract. The establishment of these deadlines is due to the need to provide the employer with the opportunity to timely select a new employee for the vacant position, and at the same time ensures the protection of the employee’s labor rights, giving him the right to withdraw his application before the expiration of the notice of dismissal. nine0015

The notice period starts on the day after the employer receives the employee’s application for dismissal.

It is not allowed to unilaterally shorten the deadline for notification of the intention to terminate the employment relationship. There is one exception to this rule, when the reduction of the term is due to the occurrence of certain reasons (events) that make it impossible for the employee to continue working (enrollment in an educational organization, retirement, or other good reasons due to which the employee cannot continue working, for example sending a husband (wife) to work abroad, to a new place of service), as well as in cases of established violation by the employer of labor legislation and other regulatory legal acts containing labor law norms, local regulations, terms of a collective agreement, agreement or employment contract, the employer is obliged to terminate the employment contract within the period specified in the employee’s application. At the same time, it must be borne in mind that these violations can be established, in particular, by bodies exercising state supervision and control over compliance with labor legislation, trade unions, labor dispute commissions, and the court. nine0015

The notice period may be reduced by agreement between the employee and the employer. So, in the application, the employee has the right to indicate that he asks to dismiss him of his own free will on a certain day, that is, before the expiration of the warning period. The consent of the employer may be expressed in the form of a resolution on the application.

Before the expiration of the prescribed warning period, the employer does not have the right to issue an order to dismiss the employee under paragraph 3 of part 1 of Art. 77, art. 80 of the Labor Code of the Russian Federation, however, is not deprived of the opportunity to decide on dismissal on the grounds provided for in Art. 81 of the Labor Code of the Russian Federation (termination of an employment contract at the initiative of the employer). nine0015

Prior to the expiration of the termination notice, the employee has the right to withdraw his or her application at any time. Dismissal in this case is not carried out, except for the case when another employee is invited to his place in writing in the order of transfer from another employer, within one month from the date of dismissal from the previous place of work. The withdrawal of the application must also be made in writing with the fixation of the date of receipt by the employer. In order to avoid abuse by the employer, the employee should keep copies of documents confirming that he sent the revocation of the letter of resignation, received it by the employer. nine0015

In the event that an employee submits an application for granting him unused vacation followed by dismissal of his own free will, the withdrawal of the application for dismissal is possible only before the start of the vacation.

After the expiration of the termination notice, the employee has the right to stop working. On the last day of work, the employer is obliged to give the employee a work book, other documents related to work, at the written request of the employee, and make the final settlement with him. nine0015

If the employment contract has not been terminated after the expiration of the termination notice and the employee does not insist on dismissal, the employment contract continues.

Dismissal at the initiative of the employee is allowed during the period of temporary disability of the employee and during his stay on vacation.

In case of disagreement with the dismissal, the employee has the right to apply to the court to resolve the labor dispute. If the employee believes that the employer forced him to file a resignation of his own free will, the obligation to prove this circumstance during the court hearing of the reinstatement case rests with the employee. nine0015

At the same time, explaining to an employee the possibility of holding him liable in case of illegal actions in the performance of official duties, the existence of grounds for the employer to dismiss the employee on other grounds, does not in itself indicate pressure from the employer. It is not regarded as forced dismissal and the fact that the plaintiff has conflict relations with other employees, his dissatisfaction with working conditions. The current judicial practice proceeds from the fact that an employee, submitting an application to an employer to terminate an employment contract, at his own discretion chooses an acceptable way for him to resolve a labor dispute, by terminating an employment relationship that does not suit him.