Employment Rights questions
30 direct answers, each with the short version first and a link to the full guide. For the whole topic, see Employment Rights.
Can my employer sack me for being off sick?
Not simply for being ill. For long-term sickness, dismissal is only potentially fair after a proper process — medical evidence, considering reasonable adjustments and alternative roles. If your condition amounts to a disability under the Equality Act 2010, dismissing you without exploring adjustments may be discrimination as well as unfair dismissal.
Are bank holidays included in my 28 days of holiday?
They can be. The statutory minimum is 5.6 weeks (28 days for full-time workers), and your employer is allowed to count bank holidays within that — 20 days plus 8 bank holidays meets the legal minimum exactly. Check your contract: bank holidays are not automatically extra days on top.
Can you be off sick during your notice period?
Yes — your notice period keeps running while you are off sick. If your contractual notice is the statutory minimum (or close to it), you are entitled to full average pay for the statutory notice period, not just SSP. If your contractual notice is much longer, you may only get SSP for the excess.
Can I be made redundant while on maternity leave?
Only with enhanced protection. Your employer cannot select you because you are on maternity leave, and if your role becomes redundant during leave you have priority over other at-risk employees for any suitable alternative vacancy. Breaching that priority is automatically unfair dismissal and potentially sex discrimination.
How long do you have to work somewhere to claim unfair dismissal?
Two years of continuous employment for an ordinary unfair dismissal claim, counted from your first day including probation. No qualifying period applies to automatically unfair dismissals — whistleblowing, pregnancy, trade union activity or asserting a statutory right — which can be claimed from day one.
Do apprentices get the minimum wage?
Yes. The apprentice rate of £8.00 an hour (from April 2026) applies if you are under 19, or 19-plus and in the first year of your apprenticeship. Once you are 19 or over and past year one, you must be paid the rate for your age — £12.71 an hour if you are 21 or over.
Can my employer refuse a flexible working request?
Yes, but only on one or more of eight statutory business grounds — such as additional costs, inability to reorganise work, or detrimental impact on customer demand or quality. They must consult you before refusing, give written reasons, and complete the whole process within two months of your request.
How much does it cost to go to an Employment Tribunal?
There is no fee to bring an Employment Tribunal claim in England, Wales or Scotland — fees were abolished after the Supreme Court's 2017 Unison ruling. Acas Early Conciliation is free too. Your real costs are time, any legal representation you choose to pay for, and a small risk of a costs order for unreasonable conduct.
Do you get sick pay on a zero-hours contract?
Yes. Zero-hours workers qualify for Statutory Sick Pay, and since 6 April 2026 it is a day-one right with no minimum-earnings test — reforms that particularly help variable-hours workers. You get the lower of £123.25 a week or 80% of your average weekly earnings over the eight weeks before you fell ill.
Can I be dismissed without reason during my probation period?
Largely yes, for now. With under two years' service you cannot claim ordinary unfair dismissal, so an employer can end probation without detailed reasons — but not for a discriminatory reason or a protected one like whistleblowing or pregnancy, and they must still give you proper notice.
Can I claim constructive dismissal with less than two years' service?
Generally no — constructive dismissal is a type of unfair dismissal, so the two-year qualifying period applies. But if the conduct that forced you out amounted to discrimination, whistleblowing detriment or another automatically unfair reason, you can claim regardless of length of service.
Will I pay tax on my settlement agreement payment?
It depends what each element is. The first £30,000 of a genuine ex-gratia payment for losing your job is free of income tax and employee NI. Payment in lieu of notice, outstanding salary, accrued holiday and contractual bonuses are always fully taxable. How the agreement is structured makes a real difference.
How long does Acas early conciliation take?
Up to six weeks. Notifying Acas pauses your tribunal time limit for that period, and if conciliation ends without agreement you receive a certificate and then have one calendar month — or the remaining original time if longer — to submit your ET1 claim form. The service is free.
How much redundancy pay will I get?
Half a week’s pay for each year worked under 22, one week from 22 to 40, and one and a half weeks at 41 or over — capped at 20 years’ service and at £751 a week from 6 April 2026, giving a £22,530 maximum. The first £30,000 is tax-free.
How much compensation can an employment tribunal award?
For unfair dismissal, a basic award of up to £22,530 plus a compensatory award capped at the lower of £123,543 or 52 weeks’ gross pay. Discrimination awards are uncapped and add injury to feelings of £1,300 to £62,900. In practice most awards fall far below the caps.
What is a protective award?
Compensation of up to 180 days’ pay, ordered by an employment tribunal when an employer fails to consult collectively over 20 or more proposed redundancies. It is separate from redundancy pay, and you can claim it even if you accepted voluntary redundancy — usually within three months of dismissal.
Who can I take with me to a disciplinary hearing?
A trade union representative or a workplace colleague — the statutory right under section 10 of the Employment Relations Act 1999. Your companion can put your case and confer with you, but cannot answer questions on your behalf. Solicitors, friends and family have no automatic right to attend.
How do I raise a formal grievance at work?
In writing, to the person named in your employer’s grievance procedure, setting out the facts, dates and the outcome you want. Try informal resolution first where that is realistic. You can be accompanied at the hearing, and failing to raise a grievance can cut a later tribunal award by up to 25%.
How much carer’s leave can I take?
Up to one week — the equivalent of your normal working week — in any rolling 12 months. It is unpaid and a day-one right for every employee. Your employer cannot refuse it, though it can postpone by up to a month, and cannot demand medical evidence about the person you care for.
Am I protected if I report wrongdoing at work?
Yes, if it is a qualifying disclosure — information you reasonably believe shows wrongdoing such as a criminal offence, a health and safety risk or a miscarriage of justice, and that you reasonably believe is in the public interest. Protection against dismissal and detriment applies from day one.
Is workplace bullying illegal?
There is no single law against bullying itself. But where it relates to a protected characteristic it is harassment under the Equality Act 2010, and bullying can also breach your employer’s duty of care, support a constructive dismissal claim, or amount to harassment under the Protection from Harassment Act 1997.
Can a job offer be withdrawn because I am pregnant?
No. Withdrawing a job offer because of pregnancy is unlawful discrimination under the Equality Act 2010 — job applicants are protected in the same way as employees, and there is no qualifying period. You can bring a tribunal claim, normally within three months less one day of the decision.
What counts as a reasonable adjustment at work?
Any change that removes a substantial disadvantage a disabled worker faces from a provision, criterion, practice or physical feature — adjusted hours, equipment, remote working, altered absence triggers or redeployment. Reasonableness turns on cost, disruption, effectiveness and the employer’s size. You can never be charged for it.
What happens to my job if the business is sold?
Your employment transfers automatically to the new employer on your existing terms and conditions under TUPE. Dismissal because of the transfer is automatically unfair unless there is an economic, technical or organisational reason requiring workforce changes — and changes to your contract made because of the transfer are void.
Is a non-compete clause enforceable?
Only if it protects a legitimate business interest and goes no further than reasonably necessary in scope, duration and geography. Courts most often uphold non-competes of six to twelve months for senior staff with trade secrets or key client relationships; blanket bans on working in an industry are usually unenforceable.
How do I find out if I am being paid less than a colleague?
Ask them — your employer cannot ban pay discussions held to check for discrimination — and send an equal pay questionnaire requesting the information formally. You then need a real comparator of the opposite sex doing the same, equivalent or equal-value work. Time limits are strict: six months.
Does my employer have to prevent sexual harassment?
Yes. Since 26 October 2024 every employer, whatever its size, has a positive duty to take reasonable steps to prevent sexual harassment of its workers — including harassment by clients and customers. Breach is not a standalone claim, but it can uplift tribunal compensation by up to 25%.
Am I a worker or self-employed?
The label in your contract does not decide it — tribunals look at the reality: control, whether you must work personally, and whether the other party is genuinely your client. If you work personally under someone else’s control, you are likely a worker, entitled to minimum wage, paid leave and rest breaks.
When should I receive my final pay after leaving a job?
Normally on your usual pay date after employment ends, although a notice period spanning two cycles can split it into two payments. Unreasonable delay is an unlawful deduction from wages, claimable at tribunal after Acas conciliation. Final pay should cover outstanding wages, notice pay, accrued holiday and contractual bonuses.
Is paternity leave a day-one right?
Yes — since 6 April 2026 paternity leave and ordinary parental leave are both day-one rights, with no qualifying service. Paternity leave is one or two weeks, paid at the same flat rate as Statutory Maternity Pay, £194.32 a week, and must be taken within 56 days of the birth.