Know your rights at work — from your first day to your last

Most claims — including unfair dismissal and discrimination — must be started within three months minus one day of the relevant act or the last act in a series. You must contact Acas for early conciliation before submitting a claim, and the clock stops while conciliation is ongoing. Missing the deadline can be fatal to your case, so act quickly.

Different rights apply depending on your employment status — employee, worker, or self-employed. Workers (including many zero-hours and gig economy workers) have fewer rights than employees but are still entitled to the National Minimum Wage, paid holidays, and protection from unlawful discrimination. Self-employed people have very limited statutory employment rights.

Yes, but there are strict rules. An employer must follow a fair procedure, consider alternatives to dismissal (such as a phased return or adjustments), and act reasonably given the circumstances. Dismissing someone with a disability without reasonable adjustments can amount to disability discrimination. Always take independent advice before accepting a dismissal if you are off sick.

You normally need two years of continuous employment to bring an unfair dismissal claim. However, there are important exceptions — dismissal for certain automatically unfair reasons (such as whistleblowing, pregnancy, or asserting a statutory right) requires no qualifying period. Discrimination claims also have no qualifying service requirement.

You can bring an unlawful deduction from wages claim in the Employment Tribunal with no qualifying service period. You can also write a formal demand to your employer (keeping a copy), contact Acas for guidance, or report the underpayment of National Minimum Wage to HMRC, which has enforcement powers.