I have been sacked from my part-time student job. What do I do?

Many students unfortunately don’t get general protection against unfair dismissal from part-time jobs, as you don’t get this right until you’ve been in the same job for a year.

However, you may still have a case for unfair dismissal from day one if you’ve been sacked for any of the following ‘automatically unfair’ reasons:

• you are pregnant
• because of your sex, sexual orientation, age, religion or belief, race or disability
• you refused to do a dangerous task which posed a threat of physical injury
• you joined, or tried to join, a union
• you ‘blew the whistle’ on wrong-doing at work
• you asserted your right to be paid the minimum wage, or took action against your employer for a breach of employment law.

If you have been doing the job for more than a year, you have a degree of protection in that you can bring a claim for unfair dismissal. Also, the onus will be on your employer to prove that they had a legitimate reason for dismissing you, as you are entitled to written reasons for the termination of your post. Timing is tight though, you normally only have three months to lodge a claim in the tribunal.

You should get legal advice on your situation before pursuing any case though. Talk to your union if you have one, visit your university job shop, or use one of the agencies listed on our free help page.