What is unfair dismissal?

If you have been unfairly dismissed from your job, you may be able to apply for a remedy (for example, compensation or getting your job back) to the Fair Work Commission (the Commission).

Before you take any action, you need to think about whether you were dismissed in circumstances that were unfair. You should consider the following: ​

If you think you were unfairly dismissed, you should get legal advice as soon as possible. If you want to make an unfair dismissal application to the Commission, you must do so within 21 days of the date you were dismissed.

Was it a dismissal?

To make an unfair dismissal application, you must have been dismissed from your employment.

If you were dismissed, this means your employer has sacked you, fired you, or terminated your employment. If your employer left you with no choice but to resign because of the way they acted, or has demoted you, you may still be able to make an unfair dismissal application. This is called 'constructive dismissal'.

If you haven't been dismissed but you are experiencing any workplace bullying, you may be able to make a bullying claim in the Commission. You should get legal advice.

For more information, see Was it a dismissal?

Was it unfair?

To make an unfair dismissal application, the termination of your employment must have been unfair.

Your dismissal will be considered unfair if it was harsh, unjust or unreasonable. The Commission will consider the reasons for your dismissal, and the process followed by your employer when deciding whether a dismissal was harsh, unjust or unreasonable.

For more information, see Was it unfair?

If your position was made redundant, was the redundancy genuine?

A position is made redundant when an employer no longer needs a role to be performed, or no longer needs the same number of employees to perform certain tasks. If your position was made redundant, and the redundancy was 'genuine', it is not an unfair dismissal. However, if the redundancy was not genuine, or your employer did not follow some of the rules about making employees redundant, you may still be able to make an unfair dismissal application.

For more information, see Can a redundancy be an unfair dismissal?

Was your employer a small business?

Your employer is a small business if they employ less than 15 employees. If your employer is a small business they must comply with the Small Business Fair Dismissal Code (the 'Code'). If your employer follows the Code you may not be able to make an unfair dismissal application. If your employer does not follow the Code, this may help you to show that you were unfairly dismissed.

For more information, see Was your employer a small business?

What can you do?

If you have been unfairly dismissed, you need to consider whether you are able to make an application to the Commission. There are a number of restrictions (sometimes called 'jurisdictional limits') on who can make an unfair dismissal application to the Commission. If you are able to apply, you need to think about what kind of orders you want to ask the Commission for. For example, you may want your job back or compensation.

For more information about the restrictions that may affect whether you can make an unfair dismissal application, see Can you apply?

For more information about the orders you can ask the Commission for if you are able to apply, see What can you do?

For a handy guide to all the things you should consider before you make an unfair dismissal application, see Checklist: Making an unfair dismissal application.

For answers to commonly asked questions, see What is unfair dismissal? - Frequently Asked Questions.​