Have you been dismissed or treated unfairly by your employer?
If you’ve been dismissed from your job, not been paid your wages, or been treated unfairly, you may be able to make a claim in the Employment Tribunal. Your race, religious beliefs, age, sexual identity, disability, maternity/pregnancy and marital status are legally known as protected characteristics. If your employer treats you unfairly or less favourably than your colleagues because of these, this may constitute discrimination and entitle you to make a claim.
However, the decision to bring a claim in the Employment Tribunal isn’t simple, and many obstacles may need to be navigated for you to obtain redress. It may be better for you and your employer to resolve your problems using The Advisory, Conciliation and Arbitration Service (ACAS) which we can assist you with. The primary aim is to always try and reach a negotiated settlement without the need to issue tribunal proceedings, which is the overriding preference of most employees. If no solution or settlement can be agreed upon during early conciliation, only then can a tribunal claim be pursued against your employer.
As a leading firm specialising in this complex area of law, we completely understand that it’s natural to have lots of questions when you’ve been treated unfairly or dismissed. We know you’ll want an experienced solicitor to fight your corner.
BTMK have a team of employment solicitors in Essex, and we have offices across the region and London. If you’ve been dismissed or treated unfairly, please contact our employment law team today by calling 03300 585 222 or by sending an email to [email protected].
It’s important that you take advice as soon as possible because there are strict time limits for bringing tribunal claims. In order to ensure the best possible outcome and compensation package, we would suggest that you seek our advice without delay.
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The Advisory, Conciliation and Arbitration Service (ACAS) is a confidential programme designed to resolve employment issues before they get to a tribunal. If you’re considering making a claim, you must have already started the early conciliation process; otherwise, the claim will be rejected.
It’s rather difficult to put a timescale on a claim in the Employment Tribunal as each claim is different. However, in some cases, claims can take up to 12 months to settle.
An employment tribunal is typically heard by a panel that consists of a legally qualified employment judge and non-legally qualified professionals. Some hearings can be heard by an employment judge alone. This is usually the case for claims relating to unfair dismissal (unless a tribunal directs otherwise).
A protect or Without Prejudice conversation is a special type of meeting where an employer and employee can speak about potential solutions without worrying about the conversation forming part of a legal case.
Both an employee and employer have the resources available to take a case to a higher court (such as the Employment Appeal Tribunal) should either of them disagree with the findings of the Employment Tribunal. However, it is rare for employment matters to reach the Court of Appeal or Supreme Court.
Compared to personal injury and clinical negligence claims, time limits on employment claims are much shorter. You have 3 months minus 1 day from the date you were dismissed or unfairly treated to make a claim. So, if you’ve been dismissed or feel like you’ve been treated unfairly, you must contact a solicitor as soon as possible.
Judicial Mediation is a process where an employer, employee and judge seek to facilitate a settlement. It is usually only an option if a hearing is listed for three or more days as it is designed to save time and resources. The mediation process takes place either before a preliminary hearing (if applicable) or before a final hearing.
There is no automatic right that you will recover your legal costs if your claim is successful. However, in very limited circumstances, you may be able to recover some of your legal costs if not all of them if the tribunal think it’s appropriate.
A settlement agreement is a legally binding document under which an employee formally agrees to waive their legal rights, in return for a pre-defined sum of compensation. When offered a settlement agreement, an employee is required to seek legal advice relating to the document’s terms to ensure they understand the rights they’re waiving. Only then can it be signed and become a legally binding agreement.
Fair reasons for having your employment contract terminated include your workplace conduct, qualifications, capabilities, a legal reason/restriction or if you’re being made redundant. If none of these apply to your current situation or you think your employer is being unfair, you must act and seek legal advice as soon as possible.
