In Wang v University of Keele the EAT held that, unless a contract provides otherwise, contractual notice, whether oral or written, runs from the day after notice is given. Furthermore, if when the employer gives notice, the dismissal date is ambiguous, the notice should be construed in favour of the employee.

When an employee is given notice, at what point does the notice start to run? The issue is critical in determining the effective date of termination and has not always been clear where written notice is given.

Mr Wang was dismissed with three months notice by a letter attached to an email, which he read on 3 November. A tribunal held that it did not have jurisdiction to hear Mr Wang’s unfair dismissal claim, which he presented on 2 May as it was a day out of time, counting notice as running from 3 November to 2 February.


The EAT upheld Mr Wang’s appeal. The principle established in West v Keels [1987] ICR 146 that when verbal notice is given, notice starts on the following day, applies in exactly the same way to written notice. This meant that in Mr Wang’s case, notice started to run from 4th November, with the effective date of termination being 3 February. Therefore the unfair dismissal claim presented on 2 February was in time.

It was irrelevant that Mr Wang had only been paid up to and stopped work on 2 February as notice once given cannot be shortened without agreement.
 Furthermore, if when the employer gives notice, the dismissal date is ambiguous, the notice should be construed in favour of the employee.