Employee on probation entitled to notice pay even if not confirmed: High Court
A probation period does not automatically turn an employment contract into a fixed-term one that expires when probation ends.
An employee on probation retains the right to receive notice or its equivalent in salary, even if the employer chooses not to confirm their position, according to a recent High Court ruling. The court clarified that a probation period does not automatically transform an employment contract into a fixed-term contract that concludes upon the probation's end.
Justice Sushil Nair emphasized that whether an employee is entitled to notice depends on the contract's wording and the circumstances surrounding its creation. The case involved Ghui Meng Yang, a former paralegal at Nanyang Law, who commenced employment on April 10, 2023, under a three-month probationary period. Nanyang Law notified Ghui on July 7 that they would not extend his contract beyond probation, offering him an additional seven days' salary as a goodwill payment.
Ghui contended that the contract entitled him to one month's notice or salary in lieu of notice, while Nanyang Law argued that July 9 marked the end of probation, not termination, and thus no notice was required. The High Court affirmed the Employment Claims Tribunals' decision, awarding Ghui $2,887.14 in notice pay, acknowledging that the contract's terms did not explicitly denote a fixed-term employment arrangement.
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