Continuous employment (qualifying period)
Plain-English definitions for England and Wales. General information, not legal advice. Laws and figures change - always check the current position on GOV.UK.
Continuous employment (qualifying period) The length of unbroken service with an employer. Many rights depend on it - for example you currently need 2 years' continuous service for ordinary unfair dismissal and statutory redundancy pay.
Also known as: qualifying period, continuous service
Related terms
- Unfair dismissal
- In England and Wales employment law, unfair dismissal means a claim that your employer ended your job without a fair reason, without a fair process, or both (Employment Rights Act 1996, Part X). It is different from wrongful dismissal (notice/contract) and from constructive dismissal (you resign because of a fundamental breach). Most employees currently need 2 years' continuous service for ordinary unfair dismissal; many automatically unfair reasons need no qualifying period.
- Effective date of termination (EDT)
- The date your employment legally ends - normally your last day of employment or the day notice expires. It is the usual trigger date for the unfair dismissal time limit and for calculating length of service.
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