The following mandatory terms from the PEER Policy apply to all public sector executive employment in relation to termination of contracts:
An executive’s employment can end in a number of different circumstances. Some of these circumstances and the responsibilities of each party are discussed below.
The Standard Contract provides that the employer:
If a new contract is offered, the employer should ensure that the administrative processes (i.e. payroll processes, new contract ready for signing, delegations continue, etc.) are in place to execute the contract before the current contract expires.
If a contract is not renewed, the executive must be paid any outstanding accrued but untaken annual and/or long service leave entitlements as indicated above, if applicable.
A contract may be terminated by the employer or employee under the terms set out in their contract. See Appendix 3 for more detail on summary dismissal.
If the employer chooses not to continue employment through to the end of the notice period, payment in lieu of notice may be offered.
It is unlawful to discriminate against an employee on the basis of age or for the employer to compulsorily retire an employee due to age (refer to the Equal Opportunity Act 2010 (Vic)). An exemption from the Attorney-General can be sought for compulsory age retirement in certain circumstances.
It is important that employers have in place processes to deal with an executive’s family, friends and colleagues, should an executive die in their employment. Many public entities have access to an Employee Assistance Program.
Payment of entitlements
The deceased executive’s family (dependents or non-dependents) or representative (trustee) is to be paid any outstanding:
Note:
Termination of contract is covered in the Standard Contract. A generic step-by-step guide for ending employment is in Appendix 4.
Redeployment to a vacancy at a similar level may be available for an executive who is identified as surplus, if provided in the employer’s HR policies. Further advice can be sought from Industrial Relations Victoria on redeployment. Executives are generally not entitled to redundancy packages.
An employer may offer reasonable outplacement support to an executive who is leaving the public entity involuntarily save as a result of termination on notice due to failure to fulfil duties or due to summary termination. The outplacement assistance provides the executive with support and enables them to search for a new job for up to four months.
When an executive leaves a public entity, any work produced by the executive remains the property of the employer, unless otherwise agreed in writing between the employer and executive. Confidential information obtained by an executive during his or her employment must not be used for: