Hiring glossary
What is unfair dismissal?
Unfair dismissal is a dismissal that an employment tribunal or commission finds was made without a fair reason or without a fair process, giving the employee a claim for reinstatement or compensation.
In the UK, a dismissal is likely to be fair only if the employer had one of five potentially fair reasons and acted reasonably in following a fair procedure. Acas lists the reasons as conduct, capability, redundancy, a legal (statutory) reason and “some other substantial reason”. Employees currently need two years’ service to claim ordinary unfair dismissal; under the Employment Rights Act 2025 this is due to drop to six months from 1 January 2027. Some reasons are automatically unfair from day one, including dismissal for whistleblowing, pregnancy or maternity leave, asserting a statutory right, trade union membership or a flexible working request. A claim generally has to be made within three months less one day of the employment ending, and following the Acas Code of Practice on disciplinary procedures matters because tribunals can adjust awards by up to 25% for an unreasonable failure to follow it.
In Australia, the Fair Work Commission decides whether a dismissal was “harsh, unjust or unreasonable”. The employee must have completed the minimum employment period (six months, or one year with an employer of fewer than 15 employees), a genuine redundancy is not unfair dismissal, and the application must be made within 21 days of the dismissal taking effect. Small businesses that follow the Small Business Fair Dismissal Code are protected.
In Canada, federally regulated employees who are not covered by a collective agreement and who have 12 consecutive months of service can complain of unjust dismissal under the Canada Labour Code within 90 days. The provinces have their own rules. The US has no general unfair dismissal law because of at-will employment; “wrongful termination” is a claim that a dismissal broke a specific law (for example discrimination or retaliation), a contract or one of the common-law exceptions.
Whatever the country, the defence is the same habit: a clear, documented reason, a process that gives the person a chance to respond, and decisions made consistently across similar cases. This is general information, not legal advice.
Also called: wrongful termination (US), unjust dismissal (Canada).
Example
A UK retailer dismisses a warehouse operative with three years’ service for repeated lateness. Because the manager investigated, held a hearing at which the employee could be accompanied, gave previous written warnings and offered an appeal, the dismissal is defensible as a conduct dismissal with a fair procedure.
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