The ACAS Code of Practice says that you should have a right of appeal against any disciplinary action your employer takes against you. If you feel the decision made is unfair or wrong an internal appeal would normally be your next course of action. You should have a right of appeal after a disciplinary decision has been made whether or not a disciplinary meeting has taken place.
The following guidance applies where you have been offered a right of appeal. If there has been no hearing, or no decision letter and no policy then contact Falconers Law for advice on what steps you can take and the options available to you.
When the employer writes to explain their decision following the disciplinary meeting, depending on the grounds for the disciplinary action, they should let you know the following:
If some of the information is not given to you then you may find the procedure for appealing in your employer's disciplinary policy. Sometimes there may be no policy available or the policy may not say anything about appealing. In these cases you should contact your employer by writing as soon as possible explaining why you are appealing against their decision.
An appeal may normally be for any of the following reasons:
You should appeal against your employer's decision as soon as possible after the disciplinary hearing. Disciplinary meetings can be stressful and you may not have understood. You might need to see what is in the employers’ decision letter first. An internal appeal procedure may only give 5 days to confirm in writing that you wish to appeal and the reasons why you wish to appeal. You may want to get advice before you decide. Miss the time limit for an internal appeal and your employer may think you were happy with the outcome and have accepted their decision or simply refuse to deal with your appeal. Separate time limits apply for employment tribunal claims, see below.
An appeal hearing may usually confirm the original decision or substitute a lesser penalty. There may be times when you do not wish to appeal or it may be better not to appeal. A failure to lodge an internal appeal may impact on the amount of compensation you are entitled to if you go to tribunal. A successful appeal will cancel out a decision to dismiss. In that case you may be reinstated and paid for time that you have been away from work.
If in doubt what you should do, then you can contact Falconers Law for advice on what steps you can take.
Remember that separate time limits apply if you have a claim to an employment tribunal for say “unfair dismissal“.
The usual time limit for taking a dismissal claim to an employment tribunal is three months’ less one day. You have to contact Acas before you can get to Tribunal. You have only this amount of time to make a pre-claim notification to ACAS.
If you know that you have been dismissed if you are close to the time limit for making a claim to an employment tribunal you should not wait for the letter confirming dismissal that may not arrive, or an employer’s internal appeal hearing that may never be held or even the decision from the disciplinary appeal hearing.
Your employer’s appeal process should be unbiased. Your appeal hearing should ideally be taken by a manager who has not had any involvement in your case before and who is higher than the manager who made the decision.
Sometimes there is no other manager at your place of work, but if the company you work for has other branches, you could request to bring in a manager from somewhere else within the company.
If you work for a small charity and there is no other manager a board of trustees could hear the appeal or they may appoint an outsider to deal with it.
If you work for a small employer and there is no other manager your appeal has to be heard by the same manager, they must try and deal with it fairly and reasonably.
If the manager makes the decision to dismiss you without dealing with your appeal reasonably, you may be able to make a claim for unfair dismissal to an employment tribunal hearing, you can contact Falconers Law for advice on what steps you can take towards appeal hearings Aberdeenshire. We can let you know what you are likely to be awarded and what claims you may make.
Depending on your appeal reason, the appeal meeting may either be just a review of the action taken in the first hearing or a full re-hearing where the employer will look at the whole case again.
If you are still not happy with the outcome of the disciplinary appeal hearing, you may possibly be able to make a claim for an employment tribunal hearing. Falconers Law can advise you on how to make this claim and give the most up to date advice and information. We will look at your case and tailor your advice to meet your needs.
You must start the claim for the employment tribunal hearing within three months of when the activity which you are appealing about took place- e.g. the actual date of dismissal or the last act of discrimination. It is still possible, and you may be forced to make a tribunal claim rather than risk losing your entitlement to claim, even if your appeal has not yet been heard or a decision on the Appeal made. You have to contact Acas before you can get to Tribunal. You have only this limited amount of time to make a pre-claim notification to ACAS.
Calculation of time limits can be confusing and critical. If in doubt what you should do, then contact Falconers Law for advice on what steps you can take.
Falconers Law offer professional and expert legal advice throughout the whole of the appeal hearings process, right from the preparation of paperwork and details for the hearing to the final outcome, or any further claims. These processes can be very stressful and tiring and can be very distressful but Falconers Law are here to take some of the pressure away with their expertise and employment law experience.
The contents of this article are intended for general information purposes only and shall not be deemed to be, or constitute legal advice. We cannot accept responsibility for any loss as a result of acts or omissions taken in respect of this article.
Any employee has the legal right to appeal against any disciplinary action your employer takes against you after a disciplinary meeting has taken place. If you feel the decision is unfair or wrong this would be your next course of action.
When the employer writes to explain their decision following the disciplinary meeting, depending on the grounds for the disciplinary action, they should let you know the following:
If some of the information is not given to you then you should consult your employer's policy to see what it says about the procedure for appealing against their decision. Sometimes there may be no policy available or the policy may not say anything about appealing, in these cases you should contact your employer by writing as soon as possible explaining why you are appealing against their decision.
Depending on the circumstances when you appeal against the decision from the disciplinary hearing you can appeal for any of the following reasons:
You should appeal against your employer's decision as soon as possible after the disciplinary hearing. If you wait too long, your employer may think you were happy with the outcome and have accepted their verdict. You should also be aware that there is a three month time frame to make an appeal hearing Aberdeenshire claim. You should not wait for the employer’s decision from the disciplinary hearing if you are close to the time frame for making a claim to an employment tribunal for an appeal hearing Aberdeenshire. In some cases, you must contact ACAS to start the appeal hearing process before you can take the claim to an employment tribunal.
The appeal process should be unbiased. Your appeal hearing Aberdeenshire should be taken by a manager who has not had any involvement in your case before and who is higher than the manager who made the decision.
Sometimes there is no other manager at your place of work, but possibly the company you work for may have other branches, you could request to bring in a manager from somewhere else within the company.
The board of trustees could hear the appeal if you work for a small employer and there is no other manager, or you work for a small charity and there is no other manager.
If your appeal has to be heard by the same manager, they must deal with it fairly and have a clean slate with the appeal hearing Aberdeenshire. If the manager deals with your appeal unfairly and is being biased, you can appeal against this also.
If the manager makes the decision to dismiss you without dealing with your appeal reasonably, you may be able to make a claim for unfair dismissal to an employment tribunal hearing, you can contact Falconers Law for advice on what steps you can take towards appeal hearings Aberdeenshire. We can let you know what you are likely to be entitled to and what claims an appeals you can make.
Depending on your appeal reason, the appeal meeting may either be just a review of the action taken in the first hearing and then no further action or a full re-hearing where the manager will look at the whole case again.
If the outcome of the disciplinary meeting is still not what you are happy with, you may possibly be able to make a claim for an employment tribunal hearing. Falconer Law can advise you on how to make this claim and give the most up to date advice and information. We will look at your case and tailor your advice to meet your needs.
You must start the claim for the employment tribunal hearing within three months of when the activity which you are appealing about took place. It's important to reply as soon as possible. It is still possible to make a claim if your appeal has not yet had a decision made.
Falconers Law can offer professional and expert legal advice throughout the whole of the appeal hearings Aberdeenshire process, right from the preparation of paperwork and details for the hearing to the final outcome or any further claims. These processes can be very stressful and tiring and can be very distressful but Falconers Law are here to take some of the pressure away with their expertise and employment law experience.
