Unfair Dismissal

Unfair Dismissal

As an employer you have to be cautious with how you deal with dismissals in order to not be accused of an unfair dismissal.  This area of law is notoriously complicated and advice should be sought and followed.

Unfair Dismissal can be claimed by an employee when they consider that their dismissal was not one of the five fair statutory reasons; capability, conduct, redundancy, qualifications and some other substantial reason.  If successful the award at Tribunal consists of two elements; basic and compensatory award.  The basic award is the same as a redundancy calculation and the compensatory element can be up to a year’s salary.  So, getting it wrong can be costly.

Employers should also be aware that unfair dismissal cases can also be brought by employees who feel that they have been forced into resigning by the companies actions, employees who argue that their health and safety concerns were not considered adequately and employees claiming discrimination.

Planning ahead and getting the process correct is key.