Case Studies

Real employment tribunal decisions, explained in plain English for employees. Each case sets out what happened, what the tribunal found, and what it means for you.

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Topic

Unfair Dismissal 55 Disability Discrimination 44 Discrimination 34 Procedural Fairness 32 Constructive Dismissal 31 Reasonable Adjustments 28 Employer duties 22 Equality Act 22 Occupational Health 22 Harassment 21

Redundancy 21 Mutual Trust and Confidence 18 Compensation 17 Employment Tribunal 16 Evidence and records 16 Disciplinary procedure 15 Contracts and Agreements 14 Grievance procedure 14 Pay 14 Whistleblowing 13 Breach of contract 12 Disciplinary Process 12 Capability 10 Pregnancy and Maternity Discrimination 10 Misconduct 9 Protected disclosure 9 Settlement 9 Bullying 8 Detriment 8 Employment rights 8 Consultation 7 Management Conduct 7 Suspension 7 Time Limits 7 unpaid wages 7 Without Prejudice 7 case-law 6 Disciplinary Investigations 6 Employment Status 6 Ill-health capability 6 Resignation 6 Disciplinary 5 insolvency 5 notice pay 5 TUPE 5 work-related-stress 5 wrongful dismissal 5 Affirmation 4 duty-of-care 4 Implied Terms 4 Polkey Reduction 4 Right to Representation 4 Vicarious Liability 4 Victimisation 4 Worker Rights 4 Attendance Management 3 Investigation 3 Natural Justice 3 Public interest 3 Race Discrimination 3 Sick Leave 3 Trust and Confidence 3 Working time 3 Contributory Conduct 2 Disclosure 2 Dismissal procedure 2 Holiday Pay 2 ill-health 2 Last Straw 2 managerial-competence 2 National Minimum Wage 2 Restraint of Trade 2 sickness absence 2 written warning 2 absence 1 Adoption Leave 1 Agency Workers 1 bias 1 compensatory-award 1 Consistency 1 control-test 1 Cumulative Disclosures 1 dismissal 1 education 1 higher-education 1 HMRC and Tax 1 Information vs Allegation 1 Length of service 1 Opt-out agreements 1 Overtime 1 Protected Conversation 1 public-interest-test 1 Qualifying Disclosure 1 reason-for-dismissal 1 Religion or Belief Discrimination 1 self-employment 1 Sex Discrimination 1 Shared Parental Leave 1 statutory-guarantee 1 Strike-out Threshold 1 worker-status 1 Working Hours 1

Outcome

All Employee-favourable 157 Employer-favourable 42 Mixed 35

234 case studies

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Employee-favourable 2026

Raising a discrimination complaint is protected, and your employer can’t punish you for it

Raising a discrimination concern is a protected act, and if your employer treats you worse afterwards, that is victimisation, a separate claim you can bring even if your original discrimination complaint doesn't succeed on its own.

Breach of contract Detriment Discrimination

Employee-favourable 2026

If you raise a genuine concern at work and are then dismissed, you do not need two years of service to challenge that dismissal as automatically unfair.

Raising a genuine concern at work is protected from day one, whatever your length of service.

Detriment Disability Discrimination Protected disclosure Reasonable Adjustments Whistleblowing

Employee-favourable 2026

A dismissal timed around your return from maternity leave can be unfair on its own

You can win an unfair dismissal claim over a dismissal timed around your return from maternity leave, even where a tribunal won't also uphold a discrimination claim on the same facts.

Pregnancy and Maternity Discrimination Procedural Fairness Unfair Dismissal

Employee-favourable 2026

If your employer skipped redundancy consultation altogether, you could be owed up to three months’ extra pay.

A failure to consult before redundancies doesn't disappear just because the business has gone under, and it can be worth months of extra pay.

Consultation Employment Tribunal insolvency Redundancy

Employee-favourable 2026

Being punished after you complain about discrimination can be a separate legal wrong.

If you are treated badly, suspended, or dismissed after complaining about discrimination at work, that can be a separate legal wrong in itself. Whether the original complaint succeeds or not, the punishment afterwards stands on its own as a wrong.

Discrimination Equality Act Race Discrimination Religion or Belief Discrimination Victimisation wrongful dismissal

Employee-favourable 2026

A secret friendship on your disciplinary panel can make your dismissal unfair.

An undisclosed personal connection between the person deciding your outcome and a witness or complainant can make the process unfair on its own, whatever the underlying allegation was.

bias Disciplinary Process education Procedural Fairness Unfair Dismissal

Employee-favourable 2026

A comment comparing you unfavourably to a colleague, using a racially loaded word, can be harassment, even if it wasn’t meant as an insult.

Intent doesn't decide this. A comment about your race, even one aimed at someone else, even one the person making it calls well-intentioned, can still be unlawful harassment if it humiliates you or makes your workplace feel hostile.

Employment Tribunal Equality Act Harassment Race Discrimination

Employee-favourable 2026

If dozens of you are made redundant without consultation, you can all claim extra pay.

If you're made redundant alongside a large group of colleagues with no consultation beforehand, you can claim a protective award of up to 90 days' extra pay, but you still have to prove your own employment and dismissal dates individually.

Compensation Consultation insolvency Redundancy

Employee-favourable 2026

Agreeing to a reasonable adjustment isn’t the same as making it happen.

Agreeing to a reasonable adjustment is not the same as making it happen, and unreasonable delay can itself be unlawful.

Constructive Dismissal Disability Discrimination Harassment Reasonable Adjustments Victimisation

Employee-favourable 2026

If your employer goes bust, the government only guarantees statutory notice pay

If your employer becomes insolvent, you can still claim what you're already owed, including unpaid wages and holiday pay, but the government's guarantee on notice pay only covers the statutory minimum, not whatever extra your contract promises.

insolvency notice pay statutory-guarantee

Employee-favourable 2026

If you’re disabled and struggling to meet a deadline your employer has set for a formal process, you may be entitled to more time.

Reasonable adjustments cover deadlines, not just physical changes to your job. Ask for more time when a disability is affecting your ability to meet one, particularly for a formal process. An unreasonable refusal, especially once you've explained the impact, can be unlawful.

Constructive Dismissal Disability Discrimination Equality Act Harassment Reasonable Adjustments

Employee-favourable 2026

If surgery could resolve your health issue, your employer should wait to find out first.

If your employer is considering dismissing you for health-related absence, they are expected to check your current medical position first rather than relying on old reports, especially where something like surgery or treatment could soon change the picture.

Attendance Management Disability Discrimination Ill-health capability Occupational Health Unfair Dismissal

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