Notice period and contract termination

[7of9]

Hi guys,

I am a relatively new contractor.

A very silly question:
If the notice period in the contract between you and your agency is, let’s say 1 month, do they have to give the notice if the client co suddenly has massive job cuts? Or they can just to ask you to leave immediately?

Thank you

7

[malvolio]

There will be an escape clause so if there's no work you go home. This is a good thing for everything except your bankl balance, since it means you can forget IR35 on hte basis of a lack of Mutuality and carrying a direct financial business risk. Notice periods are for permies, not contractors.

Others will disagree and expect clients to pay for work not done. Don't believe them.

[7of9]

Thanks for the quick response. I think next time I sign a contract, I wont be too bother about the notice period.

[SteelyDan]

Notice periods are for permies, not contractors.

Well, this isn't true. All of my contracts have contained details in respect of "notice periods", plus the subject has been referred to many times on here.

[northernladuk]

Thanks for the quick response. I think next time I sign a contract, I wont be too bother about the notice period.

Despite notice periods not being worth the paper they are written on I wouldn't take a slap dash approach to them. Negotiate them as hard as you would anything else. The agent/client will bin you with no notice if they want to and you can invoke your MOO but both are pretty unprofessional and come with a whole world of trouble. These are not options to be used lightly or to be used as a quick get out.

Negotiate your notice properly and use it.

[7of9]

Well, this isn't true. All of my contracts have contained details in respect of "notice periods", plus the subject has been referred to many times on here.

so what is your answer to my question? they should give notice during the redundancy process?

[northernladuk]

Well, this isn't true. All of my contracts have contained details in respect of "notice periods", plus the subject has been referred to many times on here.

To be honest Mal is right. Only in permie land can you gaurantee a notice period will be honoured. In contractor land there are a number of different ways around it from both sides which makes it worthless and even if one or the other side breach it no one does anything about it.

It causes a right stink for a couple of weeks don't get me wrong but we haven't seen anyone come a cropper from breaching notice period agreements.

You are a contractor, if they don't want you, you are out.

[malvolio]

so what is your answer to my question? they should give notice during the redundancy process?

Like I said, others will disagree.

A) Firstly, you aren't getting a redundancy notice, your work is being terminated and you are no longer required. Notice periods simply don't apply; it's kind of why a client uses a contractor in the first place, they're easily turn on and offable.

B) Notice periods are for graceful ending of a contract before its term. They aren't meant to be used when there is suddenly no work to be done, such as when a project gets abruptly canned or delayed for somer time. If the client is closing down a project more gracefully or wants to restart an existing contract for some reason (such as a rate change), then and only then should they offer you a notice period in line with the contract - except, as I said originally, even then they probably won't use that clause, they'll take another route.

And underneath all of that is the minor consideration that notice periods are giving you warning that the contract will stop at a given date. They do not necessarily mean you should expect to get paid for them if you dont' have a signed timesheet.

[SteelyDan]

To be honest Mal is right. Only in permie land can you gaurantee a notice period will be honoured. In contractor land there are a number of different ways around it from both sides which makes it worthless and even if one or the other side breach it no one does anything about it.

It causes a right stink for a couple of weeks don't get me wrong but we haven't seen anyone come a cropper from breaching notice period agreements.

You are a contractor, if they don't want you, you are out.

Mal is right in the real sense, yes I agree; contractor notice periods are not worth the paper they are written on regardless of their obligatory inclusion in a business contract. I made the mistake of taking Mal's advisory comment literally to mean you only got a notice period if you were 'perm' and that you didn't if you were a 'contractor'. There was no reference as to whether this would/would not be honoured.

[malvolio]

So if we're agreed that they are of no practical value, how about we all agree that the best option is therefore one month from the client and none from you. That way, you have a useful addition to your IR35 defence portfolio, which does have a value.