The National Employment Standards stipulate that written notice of termination of employment is required to be given to the employee. Employment may not be terminated until the minimum period of notice has passed.
The minimum periods of pay outlined in the Fair Work Act are as follows (add a week for any employee over 45 years of age who has been working for more than 2 years):
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Employee’s period of continuous service with the employer at the end of the day the notice is given
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Period
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Not more than 1 year
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1 week
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More than 1 year but not more than 3 years
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2 weeks
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More than 3 years but not more than 5 years
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3 weeks
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More than 5 years
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4 weeks
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An employee is entitled to redundancy pay if the employer no longer requires the employee or their position, or if the employer becomes insolvent or bankrupt. Employers are excluded from paying redundancy if the employee’s continuous service is less than 12 months or if the employer is a small business employer, also, if the modern award of the employer specifies that redundancy pay is not to be paid. If the employer is unable to pay the redundancy payment, Fair Work Australia (FWA) can determine the redundancy amount according to what they consider to be appropriate. FWA is the organisation dealing with disputes arising from issues with the Fair Work Act. The amounts of redundancy pay as outlined in the Fair Work Act are as follows:
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Employee’s period of continuous service with the employer on termination
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Redundancy pay period
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At least 1 year but less than 2 years
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4 weeks
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At least 2 years but less than 3 years
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6 weeks
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At least 3 years but less than 4 years
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7 weeks
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At least 4 years but less than 5 years
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8 weeks
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At least 5 years but less than 6 years
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10 weeks
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At least 6 years but less than 7 years
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11 weeks
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At least 7 years but less than 8 years
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13 weeks
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At least 8 years but less than 9 years
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14 weeks
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At least 9 years but less than 10 years
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16 weeks
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At least 10 years
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12 weeks
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Circumstances under which employees are not entitled to redundancy pay include:
- If employee has transferred from another, non-associated employer, service for the previous employer is not to be considered when determining redundancy pay
- Even if the service is counted as continuous, employee is not entitled to payment for their 1st job
- If the employee engaged in misconduct
- If the employee is a casual employee
- If the employee is an apprentice
- If an industry specific redundancy scheme applies
- If the employee refuses employment
- If there is an industry specific scheme in the Enterprise Agreement.
How can Prime Lawyers help you?
At Prime Lawyers we have acted for many satisfied employers and employees in recent times. Our employment lawyers keep up-to-date with this rapidly changing area of law. To discuss the termination of your employment or to obtain advice on how to terminate an employee's employment, feel free to contact us on (02) 9521 2222 to speak to one of our experienced employment lawyers. You can also send your enquiry online now and we will contact you shortly.