Handing Notice In School Holidays

kawakiman

Hi All

I hope someone in HR in a school can help. I have worked in my present school since June 2020, I am looking at a new job in a school but starts September 2nd.  My dilemma is (I don't want to ask anyone at school) If I got the job when do I hand my notice in I only have to give 4 weeks, do I wait until 31st July which I feel is unfair to the school If I hand in eg 1st July I will have to go a month without pay which I cannot afford to either or do I hand in last day of term and loose maybe 2 weeks pay.  I don't know what to do be basically I cannot loose too much money.  I have seen on this forum  before if I work on the last day of term I get paid August as well but I don't know how true that is. I would love to be able to let them know earlier so they can replace me for a September start but honestly I cannot afford that option.  Any school HR advice would be great (It is not a LA school - just a normal secondary school)

JGB1955

I worked as an administrator in a primary school.  If I were you I would hand my notice in after May half-term, stating that you are tendering your resignation with effect from 31 August.  That will give the school plenty of time to source a replacement.  You are entitled to be paid until the end of August.  Having said that, if it's not a Local Authority school it may be that their policies are different ........

oh_really

Tender the contractual 4 weeks, to do so earlier runs the risk of them exiting you 4 weeks hence.

Indigo_and_Violet

Given that you only have to give four weeks notice I am assuming you are a member of support staff rather than a teacher.
Have you checked what your contract says about your working hours? If you are in classroom you may well be on term-time only hours, but paid annually. What this means is that you only get paid for 39 weeks work (school term time) but the payment is divided into 12 equal instalments to make budgeting easier. Therefore, it might be the case if even if you hand your notice in in July you'll still be paid in August (or given a larger amount in July) because you've already worked the hours, the pay is just delayed to smooth our payments.
If you are on an all year round contract (e.g. you might be a member of office staff who is still expected to go in during the holidays) then you would need to work the month in order to get paid.

As much as I'm sure you're a great employee (the fact that you're worrying about doing the right thing by school is a good sign) - your contract only requires you to give 4 weeks notice, which to me would suggest that school could still open and run okay if you weren't there. I'd just give the 4 weeks - there are likely to be lots of people looking for work and in a position to start quickly this summer, plus they can always get an agency TA or a temp in if really needed.  

TELLIT01

Very few people are irreplaceable, nor will an organisation cease to function when an individual hands in their notice.  Just give them the required notice.  That protects your position and that needs to be the most important aspect for the OP.

M19CPB

Your school may use a final salary calculator to work out how much you are owed,
as you will be aware, you are paid 12 months of the year
Your holiday pay year will be from your anniversary date in June.  If you hand in your notice in late July to leave in August, you will most likely owe the school money as you will not have accrued enough working days to cover the amount paid in July and August.

Wait until you have a new start date and then talk to your school about your final pay, to ensure there are no surprises.

frogga

Hello, Just wanted to add my 10pence worth as I can actually answer this with some level of knowledge having been in this exact position. It feels nice to give back after all the questions I ask!
Like it has been said already, if you are support staff paid for 38/39 weeks (like me) we get our money split over the 12 months. So, if you've worked up to last day of term in the Summer (19th July) then you've worked your 'full year'. They will owe you for your full years salary up to end of August. Having said that, a pal of mine handed in 4 weeks notice mid June, expecting to be paid at end of August, just because she wanted to give school maximun time to replace her, and the LA made a mistake and didnt pay her in the Summer.  She appealed and then got it back after a few months, but she was very upset and in a pickle for a while.  They will owe you, but mistakes do happen, so I would go with the advice of informing them of the new job but officially hand in your notice on 31st July just to be sure.
Good Luck to you x

M19CPB

If you started in June, your full year will be up in June.  If you leave at the end of August, you will owe money to the school.  Please talk to your HR person, they will be able to look at your specific circumstances.

JCS1

M19CPB said:

If you started in June, your full year will be up in June.  If you leave at the end of August, you will owe money to the school.  Please talk to your HR person, they will be able to look at your specific circumstances.

It would be surprising if a school didn't have a formal holiday year  - in which case the holiday year would not be the same as the month the OP started

M19CPB

JCS1 said:

M19CPB said:

If you started in June, your full year will be up in June.  If you leave at the end of August, you will owe money to the school.  Please talk to your HR person, they will be able to look at your specific circumstances.

It would be surprising if a school didn't have a formal holiday year  - in which case the holiday year would not be the same as the month the OP started

For full time workers I agree, but for term time only workers, your start anniversary date is a key part of the final salary calculator.  This is because salary starts to be paid and split into 12 equal parts from your first pay, and does not get adjusted for a holiday year at a later stage