Most employers are aware of the general rule that an employee is required to have two years of continuous service before they can bring an unfair dismissal claim. However, there a number of exceptions to that rule and the range of exceptions has continued to expand in recent years.
The case of Scottish Federation of Housing Association v Jones [2022], EAT covers one of the less well known exclusions to the two year qualifying rule, namely where an employee is dismissed because of (or for a reason relating to) their political affiliations. On the facts of this case the tribunal and the Employment Appeal Tribunal found against the employee, but reaffirmed the principle that an employee shall be protected against unfair dismissal from the outset of their employment where their political views or affiliations are the sole or principal reason for their dismissal.
For our retained clients, we will be providing some online training seminars, commencing in October of this year. These will take the form of short bulletins on key topics which will be followed by live question and answer sessions. The first of these will cover this type of case, and will focus upon the potential pitfalls to look out for when considering disciplining or dismissing an employee.
loyee who has less than two years of service.