I have been working for my employer for 8 months and today he dismissed me. Can I claim unfair dismissal?

Unfortunately no. In most cases you need to have two years continuous employment before you can bring an unfair dismissal claim. There are some cases where you don’t need to be employed for two years, for example if you are dismissed for being pregnant or complaining about health and safety problems.

I have been employed in the same place for 10 years. When I arrived for work this morning I was told that my place of work was closed and my employers had gone bust without enough money to pay redundancy payments. Can I do anything?

Yes. If a liquidator has been appointed you will be able to claim your redundancy payment, notice pay, holiday pay and any unpaid wages from the Government through the Redundancy Payment Service, although you might not get everything you are owed because there are limits on the amount that will be paid.

My employer keeps taking £10 out of my wages every week saying that the money is to cover an item I damaged at work. Can he do that?

It normally depends on whether you have signed a form allowing your employer to deduct the money or whether your contract of employment contains a clause that allows him to deduct money from your wages to pay for damaged items.

I was dismissed from work on the 21st January. When do I need to make a claim to the Tribunal for unfair dismissal?

A claim for unfair dismissal must be made within 3 months of the dismissal so any claim for unfair dismissal has to be received by the Tribunal on or before the 20th April. However, ACAS Early Conciliation has now been introduced so the date the claim is to be received by the Tribunal will be extended. The new limitation date will depend on a number of factors including the length of the conciliation process.

Where do I get a form to make a claim to the Employment Tribunal?

The Tribunal will only accept claims on the correct form. The form is available from the Tribunal’s offices, the Jobcentre or is available on the Tribunal website (www.justice.gov.uk/tribunals/employment)

I took my former employer to the Tribunal and won but they are refusing to pay the compensation. What can I do?

You can register the award at the County Court and then use the County Court’s methods of enforcement, such as the bailiffs, to recover the award.

Employment Solicitors Newcastle, Employment Law Solicitors Newcastle

Employment

As specialist employment law solicitors, Beecham Peacock can advise you on any number of issues, including your contractual rights, grievance and disciplinary issues and what to do in the event you suffer discrimination, harassment or dismissal during your employment.

Beecham Peacock are here to help with all of your Employment Law problems.

Beecham Peacock can also assist in areas of specialist employment law, such as pursuing equal pay claims; securing maternity, paternity, parental and dependent carer’s rights.

Beecham Peacock is trusted by some of the largest trade unions in the country to handle their employment law matters, so you can be confident you are in very capable hands.

If you need details around pricing, download and review our employment tribunal costs

Please contact us at our Newcastle office on 0191 232 3048 if you have any matters you want to discuss.

Meet our Employment Team

Lisa Branker, Head of Department
Lisa has over 20 years’ experience of providing employment law and HR advice to both employees and employers.

Lisa spent the beginning of her career working for a large international German law firm in the City of London. She also has extensive in-house experience having worked as a Senior Employment Solicitor for the public sector in London before relocating back to the North East where she worked in-house as Group Solicitor and Head of HR for a large, family-run company dealing with its care and leisure sectors.

Lisa then returned to private practice setting up and heading an employment law and HR department for an established law firm in Sunderland offering advice for both employees and employers.

In acting for employees and employers, Lisa has the advantage of being able to consider both sides of an employment issue, enabling her to be empathetic to situations whilst also being able to provide pragmatic and commercial advice where appropriate.

Lisa specialises in providing HR and employment law advice in matters including discrimination, whistleblowing, unfair/constructive dismissal, maternity and parental rights, settlement agreements, grievance and disciplinary procedures, restrictive covenants, TUPE issues, redundancies, drafting employment contracts and staff handbooks.

Lisa is a member of the Employment Lawyers Association.

Anna Harbinson, Paralegal
Anna has worked in Employment Law since 2007, initially specialising in large scale equal pay litigation and then moving into advising on the broader spectrum of employment law issues, including discrimination, employment status and contracts, grievance and disciplinary procedures, unfair dismissal, redundancy, resignation, restrictive covenants, working time, wages, parental right and flexible working, and Trade Union rights. Anna joined Beecham Peacock in 2013, having completed her LLB with Honours at Newcastle University and Legal Practice Course at Northumbria University.

Anna provides advice and assistance on employment law matters to private clients, and also to trade unions and their members.

Anna has provided employment law training to some of the UK’s largest Trade Unions, their Officers and members. She also regularly blogs and tweets on developments in employment law.

Anna has a detailed knowledge and understanding of employment law. Her experience of advising in this sector enables her to provide practical legal advice in an empathic way, to help clients to better understand their legal rights and obligations.

Maureen Charlton, Support Staff
Maureen provides assistance and administrative support to the Employment Team. If you have an employment matter with the firm you will almost certainly speak to Maureen, and thanks to her experience with the department she will be happy and able to assist.”

FAQ's

I have been working for my employer for 8 months and today he dismissed me. Can I claim unfair dismissal?: Unfortunately no. In most cases you need to have two years continuous employment before you can bring an unfair dismissal claim. There are some cases where you don’t need to be employed for two years, for example if you are dismissed for being pregnant or complaining about health and safety problems.
I have been employed in the same place for 10 years. When I arrived for work this morning I was told that my place of work was closed and my employers had gone bust without enough money to pay redundancy payments. Can I do anything?: Yes. If a liquidator has been appointed you will be able to claim your redundancy payment, notice pay, holiday pay and any unpaid wages from the Government through the Redundancy Payment Service, although you might not get everything you are owed because there are limits on the amount that will be paid.
My employer keeps taking £10 out of my wages every week saying that the money is to cover an item I damaged at work. Can he do that?: It normally depends on whether you have signed a form allowing your employer to deduct the money or whether your contract of employment contains a clause that allows him to deduct money from your wages to pay for damaged items.
I was dismissed from work on the 21st January. When do I need to make a claim to the Tribunal for unfair dismissal?: A claim for unfair dismissal must be made within 3 months of the dismissal so any claim for unfair dismissal has to be received by the Tribunal on or before the 20th April. However, ACAS Early Conciliation has now been introduced so the date the claim is to be received by the Tribunal will be extended. The new limitation date will depend on a number of factors including the length of the conciliation process.
Where do I get a form to make a claim to the Employment Tribunal?: The Tribunal will only accept claims on the correct form. The form is available from the Tribunal’s offices, the Jobcentre or is available on the Tribunal website (www.justice.gov.uk/tribunals/employment)
I took my former employer to the Tribunal and won but they are refusing to pay the compensation. What can I do?: You can register the award at the County Court and then use the County Court’s methods of enforcement, such as the bailiffs, to recover the award.