Jersey: Termination of employment

Original author: Helen Ruelle, Mourant Ozannes
Updating author: Carla Benest, Mourant Ozannes

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Summary

• The main ways of terminating an employment contract are dismissal by the employer and resignation by the employee. (See General)
• The employer and employee are generally required to give minimum statutory notice of termination of employment. (See Notice periods)
• Employees have a statutory right not to be unfairly dismissed by their employer, and dismissal is fair only if it is on one of five grounds specified by statute, including capability, conduct and redundancy. (See Fair dismissal)
• Dismissals for certain specified reasons - such as trade union membership or claiming rights under employment legislation - are considered automatically unfair. (See Automatically unfair dismissal)
• There are no specific statutory procedures that must be followed before an employer dismisses an employee (except in collective redundancy situations) but any dismissal must be reasonable in all the circumstances. (See Dismissal procedures)
• Employees who have been continuously employed by their employer for at least two years are entitled to a statutory redundancy payment from the employer if they are dismissed on grounds of redundancy. (See Redundancy rights)
• Eligible employees may bring a complaint of unfair dismissal against an employer at the Jersey Employment and Discrimination Tribunal, seeking reinstatement/re-engagement or compensation. (See Claiming unfair dismissal)
• Employees who believe that they have been wrongfully dismissed in breach of their employment contract may bring proceedings against the employer for damages. (See Wrongful dismissal)