Employment Law in the United Kingdom

Can I claim unfair dismissal? How long do I have?

In Great Britain, ordinary unfair dismissal currently needs two years' service (falling to six months for dismissals from 1 January 2027); Northern Ireland needs one year. No service at all is needed where the dismissal is for an automatically unfair reason — pregnancy, whistleblowing, asserting a statutory right — or where it is discrimination. The tribunal deadline today is three months less a day from dismissal, and you must start ACAS early conciliation first, which pauses that clock. Treat the deadline as unmovable — extensions are rarely granted.

What compensation can a tribunal award?

For unfair dismissal: a basic award calculated like redundancy pay (up to £22,530) plus a compensatory award for your losses, currently capped at the lower of £123,543 or 52 weeks' gross pay — a cap that disappears for dismissals from 1 January 2027. Discrimination and whistleblowing awards are uncapped, and discrimination adds injury-to-feelings compensation in bands currently running £1,300 to £62,900 and beyond. Tribunals also adjust awards up or down by up to 25% for failures to follow the ACAS code.

How much redundancy pay am I owed?

With two years' service: half a week's pay per full year worked under age 22, one week per year between 22 and 40, one and a half weeks per year at 41 and over — using your gross weekly pay capped at £751, service capped at 20 years, maximum £22,530, tax-free (Northern Ireland's cap is £783 and £23,490). The official calculator at gov.uk/calculate-your-redundancy-pay does the arithmetic. You also keep notice pay, accrued holiday, and paid time off to job-hunt — and if 20 or more jobs are going, your employer owed the workforce 30 or 45 days' collective consultation first.

What counts as discrimination at work?

Worse treatment because of a protected characteristic — age, disability, sex, race, religion or belief, sexual orientation, gender reassignment, pregnancy, marriage — plus indirect discrimination (a neutral-looking rule that disadvantages your group without justification), harassment, and victimisation for complaining. It applies from the job application onwards with no service requirement, covers failure to make reasonable adjustments for disability, and awards are uncapped. Since October 2024 employers must actively prevent sexual harassment, not merely respond to it. In Northern Ireland, separate laws add religious belief and political opinion.

What are the minimum wage, sick pay and holiday rules right now?

From April 2026: £12.71 an hour at 21 and over, £10.85 at 18–20, £8.00 for 16–17-year-olds and apprentices. Statutory sick pay now runs from the first day of sickness with no earnings threshold — the lower of £123.25 a week or 80% of your average earnings, for up to 28 weeks, UK-wide. Holiday is 5.6 weeks' paid leave a year. Underpayment of any of these is enforced by the new Fair Work Agency, and unlawful deductions can be claimed back through the tribunal — normally up to two years back in Great Britain.

My employer wants me to sign a settlement agreement. Should I?

Not before independent advice — and the law backs you: a settlement agreement is simply not binding unless you have received advice on it from an independent adviser, usually a solicitor, whose name appears in the agreement. Employers customarily pay a contribution for exactly that advice. The questions that matter: is the payment right against what a tribunal would award, are your accrued rights (notice, holiday, bonus, pension) covered, is the reference agreed, and are you giving up claims you do not yet know about. Never sign the same day it is put in front of you.

Does it cost anything to bring a tribunal claim?

No — employment tribunal fees were abolished in 2017 and the government confirmed in 2025 they are not coming back. The real costs are time and evidence: the system has over half a million open cases and hearings are listing a year or more out. ACAS early conciliation is free and mandatory first, now lasting up to twelve weeks, and settles many claims faster than a hearing would. Judgments are published online and searchable — worth knowing before you litigate. In Northern Ireland the same is done through the Labour Relations Agency and the industrial tribunals.

Is this legal advice? Are you a law firm?

No. Legal Hotline is not a law firm. The line gives you clear general legal information about UK employment law — including which of the 2025 Act's changes actually apply to your dates — not legal advice on your specific case, and calling creates no solicitor-client relationship. When you want advice or representation, we connect you with an expert UK employment solicitor for a one-hour consultation at a fixed £145, bookable on the call with the price confirmed before you pay.