What notice is needed when an employer ends a job?

When an employer ends your job for a reason other than punishment, that is generally retrenchment. Retirement, the end of a fixed-term contract and continued ill-health are not s. 2(zh).
After at least a year of continuous service, you must get a month’s written notice giving the reasons, or wages for that period instead s. 70(a).
You must also be paid fifteen days’ average pay for every completed year, counting more than six months as a year s. 70(b).
A factory, mine or plantation with at least three hundred workers needs the Government’s prior permission, and must give three months’ notice or wages s. 77(1) s. 79(1).
These rules protect workers. A person employed mainly as a manager or administrator, or a supervisor drawing wages above ₹18,000 a month, is not a worker s. 2(zr).

Last checked 1 Nov 2026 · written from the official text · not reviewed by a lawyer. This explains the law in general and does not decide your case.

What the Labour Ministry says

“Industrial establishments such as factories, mines, and plantations employing 50 to 299 workers must serve notice on appropriate government or such authority as specified by the appropriate government before carrying out any lay-off, retrenchment, or closure.” para 4.5, Compliance Handbook for Employers, Feb 2026: official copy · our copy
Section 70's retrenchment conditions have no such range: they cover a worker employed in any industry with a year's continuous service. The Code prevails.

This is the Ministry's explanation, not the law. Its FAQs and Handbook say the Codes prevail.