These days, it’s become incredibly rare to stay in the same job for life. This means, of course, that there will inevitably be times when you could face the prospect of being let go or, if you are the employer, of ending the contract of a member of your team. Here in the UK, there are employment laws that must be followed when an employer decides to terminate the contract of one of their staff.

Different Types of Termination

There are several ways in which a period of employment might come to an end. In the first instance, the employee could choose to leave, perhaps as a result of a job offer elsewhere. This is known as resignation. Here, the responsibility lies with the employee to give their employer the contractually agreed notice and to work for the agreed period before leaving. The employer may allow this to be served as “gardening leave” spent at home, or encourage the departing employee to use the remainder of their annual leave allowance.

A more challenging case is termination due to dismissal. As the name suggests, this involves the employer deciding to end the employee’s contract, and as such it must be handled with great care to avoid the organisation facing an employment tribunal.

The Law and Dismissal

If you have worked for the same employer for two years or longer, the employer must show that they had a fair reason for dismissing you. The government has announced plans to shorten this qualifying period, so check the latest Acas guidance. Fair reasons can include redundancy, conduct and capability. It can also be fair to dismiss someone if continuing to employ them would break the law, for example if they do not have the legal right to work in the UK, or they lose their driving licence when their job depends on driving.

The employer must also be able to show that they acted fairly and followed a fair procedure. If they cannot, you may be able to claim unfair dismissal. You can learn more about your rights as an employee by exploring the information here: https://www.employmentlawfriend.co.uk/constructive-dismissal Employment Law Friend constructive dismissal claim

Wrongful Dismissal

Wrongful dismissal is different from unfair dismissal. It happens when an employer breaks the terms of the employment contract when dismissing someone, for example by failing to give the agreed period of notice or failing to pay for the full contractual notice period.

Could I Make a Constructive Dismissal Claim?

In some cases, an employer may create or allow a working environment that makes it very difficult for an employee to stay, effectively forcing them to resign. This can range from not being properly paid for your work, having your usual working hours changed for no reason or being demoted without cause, through to serious issues such as sexual harassment and discrimination that your employer has failed to investigate properly. In these situations, you may be able to claim constructive dismissal, because your employer has effectively broken the employment contract with you.

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