What does termination mean in employment?
Termination of employment is where an employer ends their employee’s position or where an employee ends their own employment. Termination can happen for many reasons and in different ways, namely resigning, their job position being made redundant or being dismissed.
There are employment workplace laws put in place regarding termination. The Commonwealth laws consider:
- If the termination was unlawful or unfair
- If the employee has entitlements
- Steps that need to be taken at the end of the employment if the employee is made redundant
These laws are regulated through The Fair Work Ombudsman and the Fair Work Commission.
What are Fair Work’s responsibilities?
The Fair Work Ombudsman’s responsibilities are:
- Educating employers and employees about their rights and obligations
- Warranting compliance with workplace laws
- Having the authority to prosecute employers that breach workplace laws
The Fair Work Commission’s responsibilities are:
- Dealing with unfair dismissal
- Dealing with general protections dismissals
- Dealing with unlawful termination applications
How much notice for termination of employment?
An employer who wants to terminate an employee must do so in writing and specifying their last day of employment. There are many ways an employer can do this by delivering it personally, leaving it at their known address or posting it.
The time-frame of notice is dependent on how long the employee has been continuously employed. It is crucial that an employer gives the correct amount of notice before termination of an employee.
According to the NSW Government National Employment Standards, the period of notice is as follows.
| Employee’s period of continuous service with Employer at the end of the day notice is given | Period of notice |
| Not more than 1 year | 1 week |
| More than 1 year but not more than 3 years | 2 weeks |
| More than 3 years but not more than 5 years | 3 weeks |
| More than 5 years | 4 weeks |
NSW Government Industrial Relations
However, an employer has the right to pay employees the same amount of notice period they are entitled to, allowing the employee to not work during their notice period. For example, if an employee has been working for more than five years, the employer can pay them four weeks. Employers are required to give an additional week of notice if the employee is over 45 years of age and has worked for a minimum of two years.
Our employment law specialists are here to help. Contact JFM Law on (02) 9199 8597for a no obligation chat. If you would rather get in contact through email, send your question through or by email at wehelp@jfmlaw.com.au.
The information contained in this post is current at the date of editing – 03 April 2024.
