Fair Reason for Dismissal

Overview

Under section 98 of the Employment Rights Act 1996, there are five potentially fair reasons for dismissal: conduct, capability, redundancy, statutory restriction, and 'some other substantial reason' (SOSR).

If the employer cannot establish one of these, the dismissal is automatically unfair (assuming you have the qualifying service).

What you can do

• Check the dismissal letter for the stated reason.
• If the real reason was different (e.g., whistleblowing, discrimination), you may have a stronger claim.