Did you resign because of how you were treated?
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Call our nationwide legal
experts on 0800 644 8646
Speak to an employment lawyer expert today
In confidence. We reply the same working day.
Constructive dismissal means your employer committed a fundamental breach of your contract, often the implied term of trust and confidence, and you resigned in response to it, promptly and without carrying on as if nothing had happened. It might follow a single serious incident, such as an unjustified demotion or a public humiliation, or a pattern of conduct that builds up over time.
Timing is everything. If you keep working for weeks after the breach without objecting, a tribunal can treat that as accepting it, which can lose you the right to claim. If you are thinking about resigning because of how you have been treated, speak to us first if you possibly can, so we can help you protect your position before you act.
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With over 30 years experience in employment law, Hatton James Legal’s Employment Lawyers have a reputation for providing prompt and pragmatic solutions. We provide specialist help and advice to employees of all levels of experience across Birmingham, Solihull, Walsall and London.
Call us or send the form with what has led up to this point. If you have not resigned yet, we can advise you on the strength of your position and how to protect it before you do.
We look at what happened against the legal test: was it serious enough, and did you resign promptly in response to it. You get a straight answer on whether the position is strong, borderline, or not there yet.
If you have not yet resigned, we help you time it and word your resignation letter correctly. If you have already gone, we assess the position as it stands and negotiate with your employer or prepare a tribunal claim.
2 years
Usual minimum service, as with ordinary unfair dismissal claims
6 months less 1 day
The usual time limit, running from the date you resign
Act promptly
Delay after the breach can be treated as accepting it
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Your employer must have committed a fundamental breach of your contract, most often the implied term that they will not, without reasonable and proper cause, act in a way likely to destroy or seriously damage trust and confidence. You then resign, at least partly, because of that breach.
You need to resign reasonably promptly once the breach happens, or once the latest incident in a pattern of conduct occurs. There is no fixed deadline, but the longer you carry on working normally, the harder it becomes to argue you resigned in response to the breach rather than for some other reason.
It varies by case. Examples include an unjustified demotion or pay cut, a serious failure to deal with a grievance, a pattern of bullying that management ignored, or a single act serious enough on its own, such as a public and unwarranted accusation of dishonesty. We assess your situation against the specific facts, not a checklist.
Often, yes, which is why advice before you resign matters so much. You are effectively arguing that your employer’s conduct was bad enough to justify leaving, and the burden is on you to show it. Good contemporaneous evidence, such as emails, grievance letters and meeting notes, makes a real difference.
Ideally, no. Once you have resigned, some options for protecting your position are closed off. If you are even considering it, speak to us first: we can often help you word a resignation letter, or advise on raising a grievance first, in a way that protects a claim you might later need to bring.