The Lowdown on Probationary Periods
Photo by Amy Hirschi on Unsplash
Every week, a wave of fresh faces embark on new job adventures across Australia, with a good number stepping into their roles under the umbrella of a probationary period.
What is a probationary period?
Think of probation as that “try before you buy” phase – a test drive for your newly hired talent. This trial period usually stretches out for three, six, or twelve months – a neat window to see if your newbies are capable, reliable, and suitable for the job.
During this period, certain aspects of the employment contract might be put on hold. The key highlight is that, should the need arise, employees under probation can be let go without adhering to the usual notice period.
Probationary dismissal rights
But here's the scoop – employees on probation won’t have worked for you long enough to qualify for unfair dismissal protection. Yet, they're not completely out in the cold – they are still protected against harassment and dismissal for ‘protected reasons’ such as gender, age, ethnicity, disability, religion and cultural background.
What's more, they're also protected against wrongful dismissal. If, during probation, employers don't play by the rules of the contract, they might have to deal with some legal hiccups.
Why is probation necessery?
Ever felt like your regular hiring process could use a dash of magic? You're not alone! Probation periods step in where traditional recruitment processes might miss a beat.
No matter how thorough your hiring process may be, there's always a chance you might end up with someone who isn’t the right fit for the role or organisation. This is where probation periods allow you to assess recruits on the job.
It’s common for employers to discover, a few weeks into the employment relationship, that new hires:
aren't quite delivering the skills they promised in their interviews.
are a not the right fit in terms of company values or organisational culture.
Probation lets you address these problems head-on before locking in a long-term commitment.
Extending the probationary period
If you are unsure whether a new employee is suitable for the job, but you are not ready to dismiss them yet, then you may want to extend their probation period.
Technically speaking, you are allowed to do this by agreement or if the terms of the employment agreement give permission. However, you can only extend the probationary period by whatever set amount of time is stated in the contract.
For example, if you put an employee on probation for six months and the agreement lets you extend the period by an extra three months, then you would be allowed to do so under those conditions. Bear in mind that if you extend the probation period beyond the minimum employment period and then dismiss the employee, they may have access to unfair dismissal if the probation period extends beyond the minimum engagement period of 6 months, or 12 months for small business employers.
Managing employees during probation
The ultimate goal of probation is to onboard and nurture effective employees.
Make sure you're there to:
Help them understand what's expected during and after probation.
Set them up with the skills and knowledge they need through training and support.
Iron out any performance kinks before probation's final curtain call.
And there you have it – probation is like that backstage pass that lets you fine-tune your hiring choices and build a powerhouse team.