Eligibility For Unfair Dismissal Compensation Explained

If you've been dismissed from your job, you may be entitled to unfair dismissal compensation.

This is an award made by an Employment Tribunal if your employer dismissed you for unfair reasons or through unfair procedures. However, before you bring an unfair dismissal claim, it's important to understand just who is eligible for unfair dismissal compensation under current legislation.

In the first place, there are basic rules of qualification, which you must meet before you bring an unfair dismissal claim. You must have been a full or part-time employee, rather than a self-employed sub-contractor, with at least one year's continuous service for a particular employer. Certain classes of employee are not entitled to seek compensation, such as members of the armed forces. There are also exceptions to the one year's service rule, depending on the reasons for your dismissal. For example, if you were dismissed for pursuing legitimate trade union activities, you may be able to bring a claim with less than a year's service. A specialist solicitor will be able to advise you on this.

A claim for having been unfairly dismissed also needs to be brought within three months of your dismissal. This is calculated from your "effective date of termination", which doesn't have to be the date on which you were told you were being dismissed. If you were given notice, for example, it could be the date on which your notice period expired. Again, check with a specialist employment law solicitor on this point.

If you do meet the basic qualifications, your claim then depends on proving to the Employment Tribunal that you were unfairly dismissed. This means proving one of two things - either that you were dismissed for an unfair reason, such as insisting upon following health and safety rules that you'd been encouraged to ignore; or that the employer used unfair dismissal procedures, such as denying you the right to representation. Legally, it's possible to be dismissed for a valid reason, such as poor conduct, but still have a successful claim at Tribunal because the employer failed to follow fair procedures.

It's also worth remembering that you can still seek unfair dismissal compensation if you resigned from your job, rather than being formally dismissed. If you left because you felt that your employer had made it impossible for you to stay, then this is known as "constructive dismissal", and you're entitled to bring a claim. However, you will still need to prove that unfairness was involved.

Eligibility for unfair dismissal compensation therefore depends on basic qualification, and proving that your employer treated you unfairly. Success directly depends on the strength of your case and how you make it. For this reason, it's absolutely essential that you talk to a specialist employment law solicitor at the earliest opportunity.




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