Wrongful dismissal compensation set to increase

An independent body has said people unfairly dismissed from their jobs in Jersey should get higher compensation.

The Jersey Employment Forum has made a number of recommendations in a report on compensation available to people in cases before the Employment and Discrimination Tribunal.

These measures include increasing the amount that can be awarded to a person in the event of a breach of contract from £10,000 to £30,000.

The recommendations were made following a consultation which the forum said received 15 responses.

The forum also said the compensation scale for unfair dismissals, which sets the level of compensation based on years of service, should be extended beyond the current maximum employment period of five years.

The court should be able to apply up to an additional 25% to compensation levels if an employer’s conduct was “particularly egregious”.

According to the report, the maximum number of weeks’ pay that can be awarded in the event of a breach of an employee’s statutory rights should be increased from four to eight weeks.

She also said the maximum compensation in employment discrimination cases should be replaced with a cap of £50,000 or 52 weeks’ pay, whichever is higher, of which up to £30,000 can be awarded for harm and distress.

The current cap is £10,000 for financial loss, of which a maximum of £5,000 can be awarded for harm and distress.

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