The first stage of a job, in which employer and employee assess the fit, often with shorter notice for ending the contract.
During a probation period, or trial period, the employer assesses a new employee and the employee judges the role. In the UK, it does not suspend employment rights: Acas states that there is no legal requirement to have one, that it can be any length and that day-one rights, such as the minimum wage, apply during it.
In France, a période d’essai exists only if the contract provides for one. In a CDI its initial maximum, renewable once under conditions, is two months for employees and workers, three for supervisors and technicians and four for cadres; the employer may end it on 24 hours’ to one month’s notice, depending on time served, and the employee on 24 or 48 hours’. In Switzerland, probation on an open-ended contract lasts one month unless a written agreement shortens it or extends it to three, with seven days’ notice by default. USA.gov notes that every US state except Montana allows at-will employment, which either side may end at any time for any lawful reason.
In job listings
Listings mention it beside benefits that begin only once it is passed: health or dental cover, staff discounts, a permanent contract. Human resources and some store manager roles track or evaluate new employees’ probation. See current roles that mention probation.
