• A dismissal occurs when an employer terminates an employee's contract.
• A dismissal should be a last resort for a valid reason.
• Employers must use a fair and consistent procedure/policy when deciding whether to dismiss someone. The ACAS Code of Practice on Discipline and Grievance sets out the principles employers should follow. If you are in Northern Ireland, please refer to the LRA Code of Practice on Disciplinary and Grievance Procedures.
• Employees have the right not to be unfairly dismissed. If they have been, they may be able to make a complaint to an employment tribunal. 
• An employer's actions will be taken into account if an employee claims for unfair dismissal and the case reaches an employment tribunal, or industrial tribunal if in Northern Ireland.
• See the section on eligibility below as time limits for bringing a claim are extremely tight and strictly enforced.

Types of dismissal include:

• fair dismissal 
• unfair dismissal
• wrongful dismissal
• constructive dismissal
• summary dismissal (for example, without notice)
• automatically unfair dismissal.  

Unfair dismissal

Unfair dismissal is the legal expression used when a contract is terminated without good reason and/or your employer has failed to follow a fair procedure.

To avoid or defend an unfair dismissal claim, your employer will have to show that the reason for dismissal is potentially fair, such as:

• lack of capability
• misconduct
• redundancy
• breach of a legal requirement
• 'some other substantial reason'.

In addition, the employment tribunal (industrial tribunal in Northern Ireland) will have to be satisfied that your employer acted reasonably in relying on that reason for dismissal.

Please see information about the length of time you need to have worked for your employer and the time limits to make a claim below.

Automatically unfair dismissal

Some reasons for dismissal are automatically unfair and there is no requirement for the employee to have worked for their employer for a certain length of time. Examples include:

• raising health and safety concerns
• pregnancy or maternity leave
• asserting a legal right at work
• whistleblowing
• taking part in official industrial action 
• dismissals relating to union membership or non-membership
• certain redundancy dismissals relating to trade union membership or activities.

There are circumstances in which employees may, following termination of their employment contract, be able to make other types of legal claim to a tribunal regardless of the length of time they have worked for their employer, such as in cases of unlawful discrimination.

Wrongful dismissal

Wrongful dismissal arises when your employer either terminates your contract without appropriate contractual or statutory notice, or breaches a fundamental term in your employment contract which forces you to leave without notice. Dismissal (termination of the contract) can be both wrongful and unfair. For wrongful dismissal, there is no minimum length of time for you to have worked for your employer to make an employment tribunal or civil law claim for your salary in lieu of your notice entitlement.

Please see information about time limits below.

Constructive dismissal

This is when you resign from your job because of your employer’s behaviour/breach of your contract. You would need to show that:

• there has been a serious breach of contract by the employer, and
• you felt that you had no alternative but to leave because of that breach.

There must be a serious and fundamental breach of your contract and examples include:

• sudden demotion for no good reason
• changes to your conditions of employment without your agreement such as relocation without notice, or making you work night shifts when your contract states only day work
• unpaid wages
• bullying, harassment or violence against you by work colleagues where your employer has failed to address the issues or take appropriate action
• not undertaking risk assessments and making you work in dangerous conditions.

The breach could be a one-off significant incident, or a series of minor incidents which, together, amount to a fundamental breach of contract.

Contact us for advice before resigning in these circumstances.

Please also see information about time limits below.

Summary dismissal

Employers have a right to dismiss without warning for gross misconduct, without notice or notice pay.

Gross misconduct is behaviour that is so serious it amounts to a breach of the employment contract.

There must always be a proper investigation, and a fair procedure must always be followed.

If an employer regards a specific kind of behaviour as gross misconduct, they should bring this to the employees’ attention and the behaviour should be set out very clearly in their disciplinary process. Examples of conduct capable of being gross misconduct include:

• theft or fraud
• bullying or unlawful discrimination/harassment
• deliberately accessing internet sites containing offensive or obscene material
• bringing the organisation into disrepute
• serious breach of confidence.

A person who believes they have been unfairly dismissed will only be able to bring a claim to an employment tribunal if they satisfy certain criteria. They must:

• have employee status, rather than self-employed or worker status
• have been dismissed
• bring the claim within three months less one date of the date on which your employment was terminated (see below)
• not fall within one of the classes of employee who are excluded from the right to claim unfair dismissal (such as police officers and members of the armed forces, for example)
• have worked for their employer for the applicable qualifying period (see below).

Time limits

In most cases, a claim to an employment tribunal must be received by the tribunal within three calendar months less one day of the date on which your employment is terminated. This is called the limitation date. See the section on 'RCN support if you have been dismissed' below. 

Qualifying periods of employment

In general, to lodge a claim in England, Wales or Scotland you should have worked for your employer  for two years. In Northern Ireland, you must have had one year’s length of employment with your employer.

However, claims for wrongful and automatic unfair dismissal have no minimum length of time that you need to have worked for lodging a employment tribunal claim. Your rights are applicable from day one of employment. Please see above for more information on automatically unfair dismissal.

For wrongful dismissal, there is also the right to bring a claim for breach of contract in the civil court.

You are entitled to written reasons for your dismissal provided you have worked for your employer for the time periods set out above. If your employer unreasonably refuses to give written reasons, then you may bring a claim to an employment tribunal (or industrial tribunal in Northern Ireland) within three months of the effective date of the termination of your employment.

Being dismissed from your job can be overwhelming and stressful, particularly if you feel your employer hasn’t treated your fairly. This guide is here to help you understand the process, your rights, and the support available from the RCN, so you can feel informed and supported moving forward.

If you have been dismissed from your job, please contact us for further advice. Provided you were in the correct category of membership at the time of the incident leading to your dismissal, we can help and support you through the next steps.

It is important to obtain advice promptly as there are strict time limits for appeals and, where appropriate, lodging claims with an employment tribunal (industrial tribunal in Northern Ireland). Identifying the actual date of termination for the purposes of a potential unfair dismissal claim is not always easy, so seek advice as soon as possible.

Before contacting us, you should read your employer’s disciplinary policy (or capability policy, if relevant) and start gathering evidence or supporting information that you might have.

This could include:

• emails, messages, letters or other paperwork from your employer relating to the dismissal and any investigation and/or disciplinary process prior to this
• your own diary of events; this will help to build a timeline of what happened
• medical evidence, if health issues are relevant to your issue.
• the dismissal letter that your employer sent to you 

Not in RCN membership at the time of the incident?

If you are facing dismissal or have been dismissed but you were not in RCN membership at the time of the incident, please read our advice on accessing support for matters which occurred outside RCN membership. The RCN will be unable to offer you representation on this occasion.

Immigration status

If you are working in the UK on a visa, please visit Immigration: your questions answered for more information about the impact on your immigration status. Your visa status is tied to your contract with your employer, so it is important that you understand what could happen next. 

Appeals and legal proceedings

If you believe you have grounds for appeal against your dismissal, discuss this with your RCN representative and explore whether an appeal is appropriate. We are unable to support appeals which have limited prospects of success or will likely be detrimental to yourself.

If the appeals process has been exhausted, an employment tribunal claim may be an option. Read our guidance on employment tribunals for more information. There are very rigid time limits for submitting claims to an employment/industrial tribunal. For most claims this is three months less one day from the date of the incident - this is called the limitation date. 

This area is complex and given the time limits involved, it’s really important to contact us for advice if you need our support with this type of action. It is vital that you seek our advice as soon as possible, to enable our legal team to assess any potential claim and advise you whether we can support you. We may not be able to offer full support if we have less than six weeks to prepare before the end of the time limit.

Other sources of support

Disciplinary processes and dismissals are challenging but the RCN is here to support you. If you need emotional support, please contact us. Our Counselling team may be able to help you. Find out more about our Counselling service.

You may find our other member support services helpful – such as the Peer support service and the Immigration advice service, depending on your circumstances.

If you have financial difficulties because of what has happened, see our financial wellbeing resources from our Welfare team.

Our careers service can help you move forward following a dismissal. Visit our careers resources, in particular our guidance on applying for jobs following investigation, dismissal, disciplinary or NMC referral.