Unfair Dismissal
Being dismissed unfairly and being dismissed unlawfully are not the same thing, and the law cares about the second. An unfair dismissal claim asks two questions: did the employer have a fair reason, and did they follow a fair procedure. Most claims are won on procedure. The deadline is brutally short — usually three months from the dismissal — and it is the reason more good claims die than any other. Call 0800 007 4103 free, any hour — and a one-hour consultation with a UK solicitor (£145, a fixed fee) can be booked right on the call.
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Usually three months from the date your employment ended. You must contact Acas for early conciliation first and get a certificate, which pauses the clock — but do not treat that as extra time. Diarise the deadline the day you are dismissed. Tribunals rarely extend it.
Unfair Dismissal at a glance
Fair reason, fair process — both are needed
An employer must show the dismissal was for one of the potentially fair reasons: conduct, capability, redundancy, a legal restriction, or some other substantial reason. Then it must show it acted reasonably — which in practice means a proper investigation, telling you the allegations in advance and giving you the evidence, a meeting at which you can respond and be accompanied, a decision by someone with an open mind, and a genuine right of appeal. Employers lose cases they should win by skipping these steps: deciding first and investigating afterwards, refusing companions, or having the same manager investigate, decide and hear the appeal. Talk it through with a lawyer now →The dismissals with no qualifying period
Some reasons make a dismissal automatically unfair from day one of employment. They include dismissal connected with pregnancy or maternity, whistleblowing, trade union membership or activities, asserting a statutory right such as the minimum wage or paid holiday, health and safety activity, and dismissal for a reason connected with a protected characteristic, which is discrimination and carries uncapped compensation. If you have under two years' service, this is the first thing to examine — the real reason for your dismissal may open a door the qualifying period appears to have shut. Talk it through with a lawyer now →What a claim is actually worth
Compensation has two parts: a basic award calculated like statutory redundancy pay from age, service and weekly pay, and a compensatory award for actual financial loss — mostly lost earnings until you find comparable work — subject to a statutory cap for ordinary unfair dismissal. Two things reduce it sharply: failing to look for another job, because you must mitigate your loss and must be able to prove you tried, and conduct on your part that contributed to the dismissal. Discrimination claims are different again, with no cap and an additional award for injury to feelings. Talk it through with a lawyer now →If you have been dismissed, step by step
Unfair Dismissal — your questions answered
I have worked there 18 months. Can I claim unfair dismissal?
Not for ordinary unfair dismissal, which normally requires two years' continuous service. But look hard at why you were dismissed: if the real reason was pregnancy, whistleblowing, union activity, asserting a statutory right, or a protected characteristic such as race, disability, sex or age, no qualifying period applies at all — and in a discrimination claim compensation is uncapped. Under two years, the reason matters more than the process.
Can I be dismissed without any warning?
Only for gross misconduct, and even then the employer must investigate and hold a hearing before deciding — summary dismissal means without notice, not without process. For ordinary conduct or performance issues an employer would normally be expected to warn, give an opportunity to improve, and escalate. Dismissing on the spot for something short of gross misconduct is exactly the sort of case tribunals find unfair.
Does it cost anything to take my employer to a tribunal?
There is no fee to bring an employment tribunal claim. You may still have costs — your own time, witness expenses, and legal fees if you instruct someone — and in unusual cases a tribunal can order costs against a party who behaves unreasonably, but the ordinary position is that each side bears its own costs. Check whether you have legal expenses cover on a home insurance policy or through a union first; many people are covered and do not realise.
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