When you want to resign from your job. How long is the notice period?
The employment contract is the starting point
If you have an employment contract that regulates the notice period, this is what applies in principle. The first thing you need to do is therefore to find your employment contract and check whether anything is regulated there.
Unless otherwise agreed, the mutual notice period under the Working Environment Act is generally one month. The period is calculated from the end of the month in which the notice of termination is given.
However, if you are in a probationary period, the notice period is 14 days, and the deadline is calculated from date to date.
Long-term employment relationships
If you have been employed by the same company for at least 5 years, the Working Environment Act stipulates that the notice period is 2 months. After at least 10 years, the notice period is 3 months.
If you have been employed by the same company for more than 10 years and are also over 50 years of age, the notice period is 4 months. If you are over 55 years of age, it is 5 months. If you are over 60 years of age, it is 6 months.
Is the notice period shorter if I, as an employee, resign?
In most employment contracts, the notice period is agreed as "mutual." This means that the deadline is the same and applies both ways. Both the employer and the employee must adhere to the same deadline.
The exception is the additional period you may be granted due to your age, as described above. The notice period shall not exceed three months if it is the employee who resigns.
Can we agree on a shorter notice period?
Often, employers will also find it perfectly acceptable for employees to leave their position earlier than the deadline specified in the contract or by law. In such cases, you are free to agree on this. However, it is important to be aware that a shortened notice period also requires the employer's consent. You can therefore suggest this, and if the employer agrees, you can agree on it.
Lawyer (H)
The author of this article is a lawyer with the right to appear before the Supreme Court. He regularly works with labor law issues for both employers and employees.