HR Notice Period in Business Days

Are notice periods in calendar or working days?

It depends on the jurisdiction and the contract. In France, statutory notice periods (préavis) are expressed in months, but specific dismissal procedures — such as the period between the convocation letter and the entretien préalable — are expressed in working days (jours ouvrables or jours ouvrés). In the UK, the Employment Rights Act specifies minimum notice periods in weeks (calendar), but many contracts specify additional notice in working weeks. Always consult the contract and applicable law for the governing standard.

France — délai de convocation (entretien préalable)

Under French labour law, when an employer wishes to dismiss an employee, the convocation letter must be received by the employee at least 5 working days (jours ouvrables) before the entretien préalable appointment. This is one of the most common calculation errors in HR departments: counting only weekdays (ouvrés) gives 5 business days, but ouvrables also includes Saturday, potentially shifting the earliest meeting date.

• The 5-day period starts the day after the letter is received.
• If Saturday is a normal working day in the company, it counts as an ouvrable day.
• Public holidays do not count.

How to set the workweek for ouvrables

If your notice period uses jours ouvrables (including Saturday), open the Advanced Options in the calculator and enable Saturday in the workweek toggle. The calculation will then count Saturday as a working day, matching the legal definition of ouvrable in the French Labour Code.

UK statutory notice periods

UK employment law sets minimum notice periods: 1 week after 1 month of service, up to a maximum of 12 weeks after 12 years. These minimums use calendar weeks. Many employment contracts offer contractual notice periods (often 1 to 3 months for professional roles), which are also expressed in calendar months unless otherwise stated. The last working day is the last working day of that calendar period.

Garden leave and payment in lieu

When an employee is placed on garden leave during their notice period, they remain employed and are paid but do not work. The notice period still runs in calendar or working days as stipulated. If a payment in lieu of notice (PILON) is offered instead, the last working day is typically the date the payment is made. Calculate the exact date using the Add Days mode to determine payroll obligations.

Probation period review dates

Probation periods and their review dates are another common HR use case. A 3-month probation expressed in calendar months is straightforward, but a 90-working-day probation period must be calculated carefully. Using the calculator, enter the employment start date and add 90 business days (excluding any public holidays) to find the exact review date.