End of a five year fixed term contract

britbat

I am nearing the end of a five year fixed term contract of employment.

I understand that when people are employed for more than four years on more than one successive fixed term contract, they are automatically deemed to be permanent employees.

In my case I have been employed on a single employment contract which is now nearing an end.

What I want to know is: do I benefit from the protection afforded to those who have been employed on successive contracts over a four year period?

Or do I have no special protection because I have had only one contract of employment?

I understand, of course, that if my contract is not renewed it will be a dismissal in law and I should be due a statutory redundancy payment.

jobbingmusician

My understanding is that your post will, indeed, be redundant after the end of the period. I don't think there is any difference between one single 5 year contract and (for example) an annual contract which has been continually renewed.

You seem not to have considered the possibility that the firm may try to redeploy you - if you refused 'suitable alternative employment' you are of course not entitled to a redundancy payment. And there's the rub......

jonnygee2

A fixed 5 year contract is very unusual (for this reason!).

I believe a lot depends on the nature of the work you do. If it was a discrete five year project that's ending I think it's different to if you were doing a job that will still be required by the company after your contract ends. In the former case you wouldn't necessarily be a permanent employee, in the latter case I think you would be.

Iceboy

I have the similar situation. I'm employed by an university intitute funded by the university. Do I have the right to claim for a permant status, or the university has the right to terminate my contract?



Many thanks for any advice in advance

KiKi

Iceboy wrote: »

I have the similar situation. I'm employed by an university intitute funded by the university. Do I have the right to claim for a permant status, or the university has the right to terminate my contract?
Many thanks for any advice in advance

If you have continuous service (with no breaks between contracts) for the same employer for four years, you can ask to become permanent. They have the right to refuse, but have to have a very good reason to do so (eg, it was always a 5 year project which only has funding for 5 years).

However. This is one of those things that really is a red herring. If you have two years' continuous service (or more), then you are afforded all the rights of a 'permanent' employee anyway (and 'permanent' simply means no end date on the contract). So the fact that you've been on renewed contracts for four years really is irrelevant, other than it means you don't have a set end date.

What this means in practice is that if they want to end your contract, they have to treat you the same as a 'permanent' employee. So they would have to have a reason to terminate your contract (eg, redundancy), you'd have to get the same redundancy payments as a perm employee, you're entitled to notice to terminate etc - they can't just let your contract come to an end and ask you to leave.

You have all the rights of a perm employee; you just have an end date on your contract. You're also entitled to ask for a contract with no end date, but it won't give you any more legal protection, as they could still end your contract with proper reason, notice etc - just as they'd have to now.

HTH
KiKi