Terminating a contract

[WageSlave]

Can anyone offer some advice on this issue. A colleague of mine (and it really is a colleague) wants to leave the contract early. He has the same contract as me. Under termination the contract states

Termination
(a) Either Party may terminate an Assignment
(i) on or after the Commencement Date if a Notice to Terminate is specified for that Party upon giving to the other notice in writing of not less than the relevant period of notice, or
.....

Next to notice to terminate it states "N/A" for both company and agency.

When I queried this, the agent stated it meant there was no official notice period, and that effectively either party could terminate at any point without prior notice (although a week's notice was politely requested).
However, my colleague's umbrella state that this means it's impossible to leave the contract before the end date.

Any views appreciated.

[insight14]

Termination
(a) Either Party may terminate an Assignment
(i) on or after the Commencement Date if a Notice to Terminate is specified for that Party upon giving to the other notice in writing of not less than the relevant period of notice, or

As the contract does not specify a notice period for either party (by use of N/A), I'd have said that neither party can terminate.

Either way, if the agent interprets it the other way, why would you friend care? Give them "polite" notice, go about your business and be happy the cards fell the right way this time.

[Not So Wise]

Could be read either way, N/A could mean either no notice is required or that one cannot terminate early, with no further information would be totally up to a judge to decide.

But if agency is stateing a week is all that that is needed and contractor is happy with that then what umbrella wants is totally imaterial (and they would pick option that forces you stay, it's in thier interest more than anyone's, even greater than client/agency)

[DodgyAgent]

Resigning

Whether you have a notice facility or not I suggest that you send a letter to both your agent and your manager giving notice of (be reasonable) one month that you intend to quit. If you can, get your line manager on side by telling him that you will do whatever you can to make the changeover as seamless as possible.

The onus of responsibility as far as the client is concerned then falls on the agency not on you. I will bet you any money you like that the agent will not sue you for breach of contract, despite any threats that they make.

If the agency is threatened with being sued (something that again will not happen) by the client, that is all that will happen. It is most likely that the agency will be let off the hook by virtue of the client putting the requirement for your replacement out to other agencies (either through lack of trust or commercial necessity).

I know I should not be telling you this but.... so what

[WageSlave]

Thanks for all the advice. I know the clause is ambiguous, which is why I queried it with the agent upon receipt. The agent was cunning enough to avoid putting the explanation in written form, so my concern is that he might have been spinning a story to get me to accept and then suffer from memory loss should the clause ever be invoked. My interest in the issue is that I'm treating it as a test case; see what happens to my colleague in case I need to do the same.

The idea of a hand over is good, although in this case it doesn't really apply. My colleague is fed up of having no work to do and wants to find a more stimulating contract. If you’ve ever worked in the public sector, you should understand the frustration!

[WageSlave]

At present, the highlight of my day (apart from CUK, Tektips & Engtips) is packing stuff into cardboard boxes in preparation for a move...

Oh yes...another eventful day in the public sector!