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What is a Constructive Dismissal Letter?
Constructive Dismissal Letters should only be used in situations of constructive unfair dismissal. Constructive dismissal is where an employee resigns are a direct result of a significant breach of their employment contract by their employer (eg bullying, harassment, a sudden demotion, or a breach of health and safety laws).
A Constructive Dismissal Letter is a formal notice of resignation given to an employer, notifying them of an employee’s resignation due to the employer’s significant breach of the employment contract.
When should I use a Constructive Dismissal Letter?
Use this Constructive Dismissal Letter when you:
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want to resign from your job
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are resigning because of your employer's conduct or behaviour
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feel you have no other option but to resign from your job
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have taken independent legal advice about the consequences of resigning
Sample Constructive Dismissal Letter
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Dear ,
I am writing to inform you that I am resigning from my position as with with immediate effect.
Please accept this letter as formal notice of my resignation and termination of my employment contract with you.
I feel that I have no other alternative but to resign from my position, due to:
Due to your behaviour as an employer, as described above, I believe the employment relationship has irrevocably broken down. Further, I consider your conduct to be a fundamental breach of the employment contract on your part, in particular, the duty of trust and confidence. I resign as a result of the fundamental breach of the employment contract and, consequently, I believe that my resignation constitutes constructive dismissal.
Please acknowledge receipt of this letter as soon as possible.
Yours sincerely,
| _________________________________ | _________________________________ |
About Constructive Dismissal Letters
Learn more about making your Constructive Dismissal Letter
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How to make a Constructive Dismissal Letter
Making a Constructive Dismissal Letter online is simple. Just answer a few questions and Rocket Lawyer will build your document for you. When you have all of the details prepared in advance, making your document is a quick and easy process.
To make your Constructive Dismissal Letter you will need the following information:
Party details
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What are the employer’s details (ie their legal structure, name and address)?
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What are the employee’s details (ie their job title, name and address)?
Constructive dismissal
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Why are you leaving? Is it because of:
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Bullying and harassment?
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A reduction in pay, or no pay at all?
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A demotion without a good reason?
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Unfounded allegations of poor performance or misconduct?
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A failure to make reasonable adjustments for a disability?
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Unfair or unreasonable treatment?
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Working in breach of health and safety laws?
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Another reason? If so, why are you leaving?
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Do you want to provide more details about what occurred? If so, what exactly occurred to prompt you to resign?
Letter details
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To whom is the Letter being addressed?
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On what date will the Letter be posted or delivered?
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Common terms in a Constructive Dismissal Letter
A Constructive Dismissal Letter should be used to resign from employment because of your employer’s serious breach of your employment contract. To facilitate this, the Constructive Dismissal Letter covers:
Sender and recipient details
The start of the Constructive Dismissal Letter provides details of the employer and the employee who is resigning due to the employer’s conduct.
The resignation itself
The body of the Constructive Dismissal Letter informs the employer of the employee’s resignation. It also provides reasons for why the employee feels that they have no alternative but to resign from their position.
The Letter clarifies that, due to the employer’s conduct, the employee:
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believes the employment relationship to have irrevocably broken down, and
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considers the employer’s conduct to be a fundamental breach of the employment contract (especially with regards to the duty of trust and confidence)
The Letter further states that, because of this fundamental breach of the employment contract, the employee is resigning and believes the resignation to constitute constructive dismissal.
The Letter also asks the employer to acknowledge the receipt of the Letter as soon as possible.
If you want your Constructive Dismissal Letter to include further or more detailed provisions, you can edit your document. However, if you do this, you may want a lawyer to review or change the Letter for you, to make sure it complies with all relevant laws and meets your specific needs. Ask a lawyer for assistance.
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Legal tips for making a Constructive Dismissal Letter
Remember to speak to a lawyer about your situation
This Constructive Dismissal Letter should be used after you have discussed the specifics of your situation with a lawyer. Due to the complexity of claiming constructive dismissal, it is important that you receive independent advice on your situation. Ask a lawyer for assistance.
Understand when you can bring a claim for constructive dismissal
If you wish to bring a claim for constructive dismissal to an Employment Tribunal, you typically need to do so within 3 months minus one day from the effective date of termination. When you use this Constructive Dismissal Letter, the effective date of termination will typically be the date on which your employer receives your Constructive Dismissal Letter.
Further, you will only be able to bring a claim for constructive dismissal if you are entitled to do so. Firstly, you will need to be classified as an employee (and not as a worker or consultant). In most cases, you must also have worked for your employer for at least 2 continuous years. However, in certain circumstances, you may be able to claim constructive dismissal if the circumstances that led to your resignation were automatically unfair (eg unfair treatment related to maternity leave or whistleblowing).
For more information, read Constructive dismissal and Ask a lawyer if you have any questions.
Follow the correct steps when bringing a claim for constructive dismissal
As a first step, you should typically raise a grievance with your employer using a Grievance letter. This is a formal complaint about the situation.
If the formal grievance does not resolve the situation, you can consider bringing a constructive dismissal claim to an Employment Tribunal. The first step to such a claim is to submit an Early Conciliation Notification Form with Acas. This gives you and your employer the opportunity to settle the dispute through conciliation, which can help save everyone time and money. However, if conciliation is unsuccessful a formal Tribunal claim can be started.
For more information, read Constructive dismissal.
Understand when to seek advice from a lawyer
Ask a lawyer for advice:
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if you don’t want to resign with immediate effect
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if any of the parties are based outside of England, Wales and Scotland
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on how successful your claim of constructive dismissal is
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if you are unsure about resigning
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on the merits of your constructive dismissal claim
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Constructive Dismissal Letter FAQs
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What is included in a Constructive Dismissal Letter?
This Constructive Dismissal Letter template covers:
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full details of yourself and your employer
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your reasons for resigning (for example bullying and harassment, a reduction in pay, being demoted, allegations of poor performance, or a failure to make reasonable adjustments for a disability)
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breakdown of the employment relationship, which has resulted in your resignation
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Why do I need a Constructive Dismissal Letter?
When you want to resign from your job in response to your employer's behaviour or conduct, this may still count as a 'dismissal'. Make sure you follow the correct procedure when you want to resign from your job so that you have a better chance of being able to claim constructive dismissal.
A Constructive Dismissal Letter is necessary for the constructive dismissal process. It shows that you are not resigning voluntarily but are considering yourself to be forcibly dismissed because of your employer’s unreasonable behaviour or conduct. By resigning in this way, you may be able to claim constructive dismissal with an Employment Tribunal.
When resigning and asserting that your resignation is a constructive dismissal it is crucial that you avoid resigning before the actual breach of contract occurs. If you resign before the breach of contract happens, your employer may argue that there was no dismissal and that you simply resigned through no fault of theirs.
For more information, read Constructive dismissal.
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What conduct amounts to constructive dismissal?
Constructive dismissal is any significant breach of an employee’s employment contract by their employer. There is no clear, exhaustive list of the types of conduct which may amount to constructive dismissal. Whether an employer’s conduct amounts to a serious breach of the employment contract will typically depend on the specifics of the situation. However, examples of the types of breaches which are typically considered significant breaches for the purposes of constructive dismissal include:
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not paying an employee their wages
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the employer refusing to make reasonable adjustments for a disability
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workplace bullying and/or harassment (especially if the employer fails to address this behaviour)
For more information, read Constructive dismissal and do not hesitate to Ask a lawyer if you’re unsure whether your situation can be considered constructive dismissal.
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Why is there no effective date of termination?
When resigning because of constructive dismissal, it is common for employees to resign with immediate effect (ie from the date of the Constructive Dismissal Letter). Resignations under this Constructive Dismissal Letter have immediate effect.
This is because it's important to resign promptly and without any delay when resigning from your job due to your employer’s unreasonable behaviour. Typically, this is because in many situations employees feel the situation is so intolerable that they cannot continue working for the employer for another day.
If you resign after too much time has passed after the breach of contract, you may lose your right to any constructive dismissal claim. By staying in your job, your employer can argue that you have accepted the conduct or treatment.
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What does 'irrevocable breakdown of the employment relationship' mean?
This means that, because of the way your employer has conducted themselves, the employment relationship has broken down to the point where it is impossible to put the parties back into the same position they were in before the breach of contract. For example, if an employer has failed to address issues of harassment or bullying in the workplace, the affected employee may feel that they can no longer work for that employer due to the breakdown of trust.
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What does 'duty of trust and confidence' mean?
The duty of trust and confidence is an implied term of the employment contract where it is assumed that the employee can trust the employer to uphold their interests and to provide a safe working environment. The employer must not conduct themselves in a way that is likely to destroy or damage their relationship with the employee. For more information, read Implied terms of employment contracts.
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