Notice of Termination Periods For Apprentices

In accordance with the Plumbing and Fire Sprinklers Award 2020, if an apprentice’s employment is terminated by the employer, the employer is required to provide the relevant notice period depending on how long they have been employed. Similarly, if the apprentice resigns from employment, they, too, must provide a notice period.  

For an apprentice who has been employed for 12 months or less, the amount of notice period is now deemed to be one weeks’ notice, which has to be provided by either the employer (if employment is terminated or made redundant) or the employee (if they resign).

The following provides an overview of the required notice period depending on length of service.  

Note: if the employee is over 45 years old and has completed at least 2 years of continuous service with the employer at the end of the day the notice is given, then that employee receives an additional 1 weeks’ notice if the employment is terminated by the employer.  

Having a signed contract between you and your apprentice makes it easier to ensure compliance. MPAQ has apprentice employment contracts available for members. These contracts are compliant with current legislation and Awards, and can be amended to fit your business and your apprentice’s needs.

If your current apprentice employment contract states two weeks' notice for someone employed not more than 1 year, then you may either:

• Need to update the contract to reflect one week’s notice and consult with the apprentice and provide an updated contract; or
• Continue to provide two weeks' notice, which would also mean the apprentice would need to provide two weeks' notice if they resign.

Updates to our apprentice employment contracts based on recent legislation amendments include:

• Amended notice of termination clauses as per above
• Temporary shutdown provisions (such as Christmas and New Year period shutdowns) in accordance with relevant awards
• Other leave entitlements such as family and domestic violence leave
• Amended wording in relation to sexual harassment and it being deemed serious misconduct

Check out employment contracts

For further information, please contact the HR team on 07 3270 0800.