Guide · updated November 2026

Who can claim unfair dismissal?

• You need to have worked for the employer for at least 6 months, or 12 months if the employer has fewer than 15 employees (counting regular casuals).
• If you earn A$190,100 or more a year (dismissals from 1 July 2026), you can only claim unfair dismissal if an award or enterprise agreement covers you.
• You must have been an employee. Contractors can't claim unfair dismissal (some can make a general protections claim).
• Casuals are covered only if they worked regularly and systematically and expected that to continue.
• You must have been dismissed, which can include being forced to resign.
• A genuine redundancy isn't unfair dismissal. It's genuine only if the job is no longer needed, any award or agreement consultation obligations were met, and redeployment within the business or related businesses wasn't reasonable.

Small businesses

If your employer has fewer than 15 employees and followed the Small Business Fair Dismissal Code, the dismissal isn't unfair.

Free help and official information: Fair Work Commission: unfair dismissal · Fair Work Commission: legal help and representation (including the free Workplace Advice Service) · Legal Aid NSW: termination of employment · Fair Work Ombudsman: ending employment

More: The 21-day deadline for unfair dismissal · Unfair dismissal or general protections? · How much compensation for unfair dismissal? · Conciliation: what to expect · Filling in Form F2 · The Small Business Fair Dismissal Code · Was it a genuine redundancy? · Forced to resign: when it counts as dismissal