Ordinary termination: How is the notice period calculated?
Created: 11/22/2022, 7:00 p.m
By: Carina Blumenroth
Do you no longer want to do your job with your employer?
Then dismissal is a necessary evil.
You have to meet deadlines.
You and your employer no longer fit together?
Then a necessary step can be the termination – but you have to meet deadlines for this.
How they can look like in the case of a voluntary termination and an ordinary termination by your employer is regulated a little differently.
Notice periods: Where does it say how much time I have to plan?
Notice periods should be kept in mind.
However, it is often said: "In case of doubt for the employee".
© Zoonar.com/Wolfgang Filser/Imago
If you want to quit your job, it's worth taking a look at your employment contract, which may set out the notice periods.
If necessary, reference is made to the statutory deadlines, in which case these apply.
Under certain circumstances, however, a collective agreement regulates further details on the subject of termination and the associated deadlines.
If there is a collective agreement, the deadlines specified there only apply if they are more favorable for the employee, as
explained by the
Finanztip portal.
The legal regulations on the notice periods in the German Civil Code
The German Civil Code (BGB) regulates the statutory notice period:
(1) The employment relationship of a worker or an employee (employee) can be terminated with a notice period of four weeks to the fifteenth or to the end of a calendar month.
(2) The notice period for termination by the employer is if the employment relationship in the business or company
1. has existed for two years, one month to the end of a calendar month,
2. has existed for five years, two months to the end of a calendar month,
3 .has existed for eight years, three months to the end of a calendar month,
4. has existed for ten years, four months to the end of a calendar month,
5. has existed for twelve years, five months to the end of a calendar month,
6. has existed for 15 years, six months at the end of a calendar month,
7. Has existed for 20 years, seven months to the end of a calendar month.
(3) During an agreed probationary period, for a maximum of six months, the employment relationship can be terminated with a notice period of two weeks.
(4) Regulations that deviate from paragraphs 1 to 3 can be agreed by collective agreement.
Within the scope of such a collective agreement, the deviating provisions of the collective agreement between employers and employees who are not bound by a collective agreement apply if their application has been agreed between them.
(5) A shorter notice period than that specified in paragraph 1 can only be agreed in an individual contract,
1. if an employee is hired for temporary help;
this does not apply if the employment relationship is continued for more than three months;
2. if the employer generally employs no more than 20 employees, excluding those employed for their vocational training, and the notice period is not less than four weeks.
When determining the number of employees, part-time employees with a regular weekly working time of no more than 20 hours are to be taken into account at 0.5 and no more than 30 hours at 0.75.
The individual contractual agreement longer than the notice periods mentioned in paragraphs 1 to 3 remains unaffected.
(6) No longer period may be agreed for the termination of the employment relationship by the employee than for the termination by the employer.
BGB, § 622, www.gesetze-im-internet.de/bgb/__622.html, as of November 21, 2022
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28 days notice – that applies to the employee
If the legal regulations take effect and you want to give notice as an employee, you have a period of four weeks.
The deadline applies to the 15th of a month or to the end of the month.
It is important to note that four weeks means 28 days in this context.
Exceptions apply if you give notice during the probationary period - during this period there is a notice period of two weeks - for the employer and for the employee.
termination by the employer
While employees have a constant notice period of four weeks, things are a bit different for employers.
Depending on the length of service, the notice period is also extended by the employer.
This can also be found in the Civil Code (see above).
What if the employment contract contains longer notice periods than the law?
If your employment contract contains longer periods than those stipulated by law, that is also legal.
However, the deadlines for the employee must never be longer than for the employer.
The employment contract can also stipulate that the notice period is extended depending on the length of service.
Shorter notice periods for employees are generally not effective.
This is only possible for temporary workers who have been in the company for up to three months or in small businesses with fewer than 20 employees, as
Finanztip
informs.
However, the minimum notice period of four weeks also applies here.
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Termination: How does my vacation play into this?
As an employee, you are of course entitled to holiday leave, which can also affect when you actually have your last working day if you are given notice.
If you give up your job in the first half of the year, you are entitled to one twelfth of the annual entitlement per month.
If you leave the job after July 1st, you are entitled to the rest of the annual leave.
The exact procedure is best discussed with the employer or the human resources department.