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HR Glossary

Notice period

Australia · Fair Work and entitlements
What is a notice period?

A notice period is the time between telling an employee (or employer) that employment will end and the final day of work. In Australia, the National Employment Standards set minimum notice an employer must give, scaled by the employee's length of service.

NES minimum notice of termination

Under 1 year of service1 week
1 to 3 years2 weeks
3 to 5 years3 weeks
More than 5 years4 weeks
Over 45 with 2+ years' serviceAdd 1 extra week

What notice must an employer give?

The NES minimums scale with continuous service: one week for less than a year, rising to four weeks after five years, with one extra week if the employee is over 45 and has at least two years' service. Awards, agreements and contracts can require more than these minimums but never less. The data block below shows the full scale.

Do the same rules apply when an employee resigns?

No. The NES minimums bind employers, not resigning employees. An employee's notice obligation comes from their award, enterprise agreement or contract, and many awards mirror the employer scale without the over-45 addition. If no instrument or contract sets a notice requirement, a resigning employee has no fixed statutory notice period.

Can notice be paid out instead of worked?

Yes. An employer can pay in lieu of notice, ending employment immediately and paying what the employee would have earned across the notice period. Employers can also direct an employee not to attend work during notice (garden leave) while continuing to pay them, which is common where the person is moving to a competitor.

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Redundancy pay

Redundancy pay is the severance payment Australia's National Employment Standards require when an employee's job is made genuinely redundant, scaled from 4 up to 16 weeks' base pay by years of continuous service.

Read the definition →Related term

Unfair dismissal

Unfair dismissal is a dismissal that Australia's Fair Work Commission finds harsh, unjust or unreasonable, where the employee was eligible to claim and the dismissal was not a genuine redundancy.

Read the definition →Related term

Employee tenure

Employee tenure is the length of time a person has been continuously employed by the same organisation.

Read the definition →HR Glossary

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Common questions

Do casual employees get notice?

No. The NES notice minimums do not apply to casual employees; casual engagements can end without notice unless an agreement provides otherwise.

Does notice apply to serious misconduct?

No. An employer can dismiss without notice for serious misconduct, though the dismissal itself still needs to withstand unfair dismissal scrutiny.

This page is general information, not legal advice. We check figures annually and update them on a best-efforts basis, but employment rules change and we cannot promise everything here is current or complete. Before you act on it, confirm the detail with the Fair Work Ombudsman (fairwork.gov.au) or your own adviser. Last reviewed July 2026.