# LAW-0002 - Notice and Redundancy Pay Entitlements

## Controlling authority

**Fair Work Act 2009 (Cth)** - the National Employment Standards (NES) set the minimum
entitlements for all national system employees.

- Notice of termination: **s 117**
- Redundancy pay: **s 119**

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## Facts

- Full-time employee of a national-system employer that is not a small business employer
- 6 years of continuous service
- Under 45 years of age
- Position genuinely redundant
- Employer pays out the notice period in lieu of working it

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## (a) Minimum notice period - s 117 Fair Work Act 2009 (Cth)

Section 117 sets the following minimum notice scale based on continuous service:

| Period of continuous service | Minimum notice |
|------------------------------|---------------|
| Less than 1 year             | 1 week        |
| 1 year and up to 3 years     | 2 weeks       |
| 3 years and up to 5 years    | 3 weeks       |
| 5 years and over             | 4 weeks       |

An additional 1 week is added for employees who are over 45 years of age and have
completed at least 2 years of continuous service (s 117(3)(b)). That loading does not
apply here because the employee is under 45.

**With 6 years of service, the employee falls in the "5 years and over" band.**

### Answer (a): 4 weeks notice

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## (b) Redundancy pay - s 119 Fair Work Act 2009 (Cth)

Section 119 sets the following redundancy pay scale based on continuous service:

| Period of continuous service          | Redundancy pay |
|---------------------------------------|---------------|
| At least 1 year but less than 2 years | 4 weeks       |
| At least 2 years but less than 3 years| 6 weeks       |
| At least 3 years but less than 4 years| 7 weeks       |
| At least 4 years but less than 5 years| 8 weeks       |
| At least 5 years but less than 6 years| 10 weeks      |
| At least 6 years but less than 7 years| 11 weeks      |
| At least 7 years but less than 8 years| 13 weeks      |
| At least 8 years but less than 9 years| 14 weeks      |
| At least 9 years but less than 10 years| 16 weeks     |
| At least 10 years                     | 12 weeks      |

Note: the 10-year figure drops to 12 weeks because long service leave legislation
typically provides equivalent or greater coverage at that tenure.

**With exactly 6 years of continuous service, the employee falls in the
"at least 6 years but less than 7 years" band.**

### Answer (b): 11 weeks redundancy pay (base pay)

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## Summary

| Entitlement      | Weeks | Statutory basis                         |
|------------------|-------|-----------------------------------------|
| Notice period    | 4     | s 117, Fair Work Act 2009 (Cth)        |
| Redundancy pay   | 11    | s 119, Fair Work Act 2009 (Cth)        |

Both figures are minimums under the NES. An enterprise agreement, modern award, or
individual contract may provide more favourable terms (s 55), but cannot undercut
these NES floors.

Because the employer is paying out the notice period rather than requiring the employee
to work it, the employee receives 4 weeks' pay in lieu of notice (s 117(2)) plus
11 weeks' redundancy pay - a total of 15 weeks of base pay, plus any accrued but
untaken annual leave (paid at the full rate including leave loading where applicable,
under s 90).

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## Approach

This answer is derived solely from the text of the Fair Work Act 2009 (Cth), ss 117
and 119, applying the NES scales at the employee's stated tenure (6 years) and age
(under 45). No award or agreement-specific provisions are assumed. The "small business
employer" carve-out (which can reduce or remove the redundancy pay entitlement under
s 119(1)) does not apply as the employer is expressly stated to be not a small business
employer.