Jamaica Termination and Redundancy Payments Act Explained

 

Written by Damalio Powell

The Jamaican Termination and Redundancy Payments Act is an act that was made operational on December 9, 1974. The act facilitates for employees to receive redundancy pay where eligible and notice to be mandatory for the termination of employment. The Termination and Redundancy Payments act deals with 2 major parts which are redundancy and notice pay. 

In this article, the redundancy will not be discussed, as it was covered in depth in the How to Calculate Redundancy Payments blog. This article will specifically cover notice and probation period. 

Notice period

Notice given by an employer with the intention of terminating the contract of employment is related to the worker’s length of service with that employer. The Jamaican notice period is as follows

An employee with less than 5 years of service = 2 weeks’ notice

An employee with 5 to 9 years of service = 4 weeks’ notice

An employee with 10 to 14 years of service = 6 weeks’ notice

An employee with 15 to 19 years of service = 8 weeks’ notice

An employee with 20 or more years of service = 12 weeks’ notice

Probation Period

A probation period is a phase at the start of employment in which an employee can be dismissed with little or no notice if he or she is perceived to be unsuitable for the position. In Jamaica, the probation period is 90 days. In those 90 days, either party can terminate without notice. 

Outside of the probation period, if a worker in Jamaica wants to terminate his or her contract, then 2 weeks’ notice irrespective of the length of service will need to be given to the employer.