Easily manage employment in France

French employers in general have the following ways to terminate the employment relationship:

• Termination by mutual consent through a settlement agreement;
• Employee resignation with written notice and notice period as per employment contract;
• Urgent dismissal of the employee, for example in case of theft or any other serious misconduct.

The statutory notice period for an employer depends on the duration of employment. For employment duration between 6 months and 2 years, the notice period is 1 month. For employment duration over 2 years, it is 2 months. For executives, the notice period is 3 months.

There are exceptions where notice period is not observed:

• Employer’s voluntary waiver on the notice period or upon the employee’s request. 
• Employee’s resignation during pregnancy or for the purpose of raising a child.
• Employee’s resignation following business start-up leave.
• An applicable collective agreement makes exemption.

The maximum length of a probationary period is 8 months depends on position held. Probation period is also applicable to part-time employees and collective bargaining agreements also play a role here.