Employment e-Brief – The Two Year Rule
Friday 1st June 2012
We have had a number of queries in recent weeks regarding the new two year rule for unfair dismissal and it seems, rather as we expected, that there is a degree of confusion about the transition from the old one year rule to the two year rule.
The position is very straightforward. The new two year rule only applies to employees who started work with the employer after 6 April 2012. All employees who started before 6 April 2012 only need to have accrued one year’s continuous service to claim unfair dismissal.
The risk comes with those employees who have only been with you say, nine months and who you mistakenly think will need to accrue 2 years. The best advice therefore is always to check that the start date is 6 April 2012 or after if you believe that the two year rule is going to apply to them.
If you have any queries about any aspect of this E-Brief or any other matters you should contact the Employment Law team.