Wrongful Dismissal

Have you been Wrongfully Dismissed? If this is the case, then we can help you use your legal rights and gain compensation from your ex-employer.

What is wrongful dismissal?

Wrongful dismissal is a dismissal which is in breach of your Employment contract. In wrongful dismissal cases, unlike unfair dismissal, fairness is not an issue. The only question is whether the terms of the contract which can either be express, ie. a set period of notice, a set wage rate or an implied term, ie. the duty to provide a safe system of work, have been breached.

An employee will have a claim in damages for financial loss suffered if the employer when dismissing them has breached the contract and as a result of that has caused them loss.

A normal wrongful dismissal claim is when an employer dismisses an employee without giving the employee the correct notice or paying them in lieu of notice.  A claim for wrongful dismissal can also be included in a claim for constructive unfair dismissal where due to an employer’s breach of the contract, the employee has resigned in response to the employer’s breach and notice has not been worked or paid in lieu.

An example of a dismissal that may be wrongful but not unfair is that an employee may be being made redundant where there is clearly a genuine redundancy situation and a fair procedure has been followed, however, the employee has not received notice or pay in lieu of notice.

Contact Susan within the Employment team today on 0161 785 3500.

Less than 2 years Service?

Another common example of wrongful dismissal is where an employee who has less than 2 years length of service, and therefore no unfair dismissal rights, is summarily dismissed but their contract provides for them to be issued with one months’ notice and this is either not given and not paid in lieu. The majority of wrongful dismissal claims, if, for example, the claim is for a few hundred pounds, can be resolved under ACAS Early Conciliation which is a free service.