{"id":15158,"date":"2025-09-17T14:09:00","date_gmt":"2025-09-17T14:09:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.brightmine.com\/uk\/?post_type=resources&#038;p=15158"},"modified":"2026-02-16T14:30:13","modified_gmt":"2026-02-16T14:30:13","slug":"probationary-periods-lessons-from-recent-tribunal-cases","status":"publish","type":"resources","link":"https:\/\/www.brightmine.com\/uk\/resources\/talent-management\/talent-acquisition\/onboarding\/probationary-periods-lessons-from-recent-tribunal-cases\/","title":{"rendered":"Probationary periods\u00a0&#8211;\u00a0lessons\u00a0from\u00a0recent tribunal cases"},"content":{"rendered":"\n<div class=\"wp-block-group alignwide has-primary-white-background-color has-background has-global-padding is-layout-constrained wp-container-core-group-is-layout-b5fc8583 wp-block-group-is-layout-constrained\" style=\"border-radius:25px;padding-top:var(--wp--preset--spacing--30);padding-right:var(--wp--preset--spacing--30);padding-bottom:var(--wp--preset--spacing--30);padding-left:var(--wp--preset--spacing--30)\">\n<div class=\"wp-block-columns is-layout-flex wp-container-core-columns-is-layout-7fc3d43a wp-block-columns-is-layout-flex\">\n<div class=\"wp-block-column is-layout-flow wp-block-column-is-layout-flow\" style=\"flex-basis:70%\">\n<p class=\"\">UK employment law is evolving &#8211; are you prepared? In our latest&nbsp;podcast,&nbsp;Susie Munro, senior&nbsp;legal&nbsp;editor at Brightmine, looks at three&nbsp;recent tribunal cases&nbsp;relating to&nbsp;probationary periods, and discusses the upcoming introduction of a day-one right to claim unfair dismissal.&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p id=\"listen\" class=\"\">We share actionable insights, real&nbsp;tribunal&nbsp;stories and practical steps to help your organisation stay compliant and competitive. Listen now to future-proof your HR strategy!<\/p>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-embed is-type-rich is-provider-spotify wp-block-embed-spotify wp-embed-aspect-21-9 wp-has-aspect-ratio\"><div class=\"wp-block-embed__wrapper\">\n<iframe title=\"Spotify Embed: Probationary periods: lessons from recent tribunal cases\" style=\"border-radius: 12px\" width=\"100%\" height=\"152\" frameborder=\"0\" allowfullscreen allow=\"autoplay; clipboard-write; encrypted-media; fullscreen; picture-in-picture\" loading=\"lazy\" src=\"https:\/\/open.spotify.com\/embed\/episode\/6ySKgCRo9HQsSa0KJEyf8d?utm_source=oembed\"><\/iframe>\n<\/div><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\">Key Takeaways<\/h2>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"\"><strong>Major&nbsp;Legal Change&nbsp;Ahead<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li class=\"\">The Employment Rights Bill will remove the two-year qualifying period for unfair dismissal, likely in 2027.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"\"><strong>Legal&nbsp;Risks Still Exist During Probation<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li class=\"\">Dismissals during probation can still lead to claims for discrimination, victimisation, or automatic unfair dismissal.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"\"><strong>Lessons&nbsp;from&nbsp;Tribunal Cases<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li class=\"\">From unfair dismissal protection to victimisation claims, and failure to make reasonable adjustments.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"\"><strong>Best Practice for Employers<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li class=\"\">Advice on how to prepare for the upcoming\u00a0changes.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n\n\n<details id=\"transcript\" class=\"wp-block-details has-secondary-blue-color has-text-color has-link-color wp-elements-dac09f936d92bdeb513876d63df167d7 is-layout-flow wp-block-details-is-layout-flow\" style=\"font-size:clamp(14px, 0.875rem + ((1vw - 3.2px) * 0.548), 18px);\"><summary>Read the transcript<\/summary>\n<p class=\"\"><strong>Robert Shore:<\/strong> Hello, and welcome to the Brightmine podcast, formerly known as the XpertHR podcast. Brightmine is a leading provider of people data, analytics and insight, offering employment law expertise, comprehensive HR resources and reward data to meet every HR and organisational challenge and opportunity. You can find us any time of the day or night at <a href=\"\/uk\/\">www.brightmine.com<\/a>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"\">Hello everyone. My name is Robert Shore, and today we\u2019re going to be talking about some tribunal cases concerning probationary periods. To do this, I am joined by Susie Munro, senior legal editor at Brightmine. Susie, hello.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"\"><strong>Susie Munro:<\/strong> Hello Robert.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"\"><strong>Robert Shore: <\/strong>The Employment Rights Bill, as we all know, will potentially bring big changes to how probationary periods operate, with the proposed emoval of the current two-year qualifying period for unfair dismissal slated to come into force in 2027.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"\">There remain plenty of unknowns when it comes to the Employment Rights Bill, of course. For instance, we don\u2019t yet know the detail of what the Government has planned for what it calls the \u2018initial period of employment\u2019. That doesn\u2019t mean there\u2019s nothing employers can do to prepare in the interim, though. So in this podcast we\u2019re going to look at some recent cases and explore what lessons we can take from them that could help employers be ready for the removal of the qualifying period.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"\">Let\u2019s start by setting out the current position then. Susie, probationary periods don\u2019t actually have a special status in law, do they?<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"\"><strong>Susie Munro:<\/strong> They don\u2019t, no. There\u2019s no rights for employers or employees that attach specifically to the probationary period. The difference in the way that employers can treat employees during the probationary period is all about the fact that employees don\u2019t have the right to claim unfair dismissal in the first two years. So that means that employers can dismiss without having to meet the standards of having a potentially fair reason, acting reasonably and following a fair procedure. They can do that and the employee can\u2019t bring an unfair dismissal claim.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"\">You can have different contractual terms that apply during a probationary period, but in terms of statutory rights there\u2019s nothing special about the period that the employer defines as the probationary period.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"\">So what these cases show is that there are still legal risks where an employer dismisses a probationer without a fair reason and without following a fair procedure. Because employees can still claim discrimination, victimisation, there might be a claim for automatically unfair dismissal. So it\u2019s not completely risk-free to dismiss someone at the beginning of their employment.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"\"><strong>Robert Shore: <\/strong>Now, as you said before, the Employment Rights Bill, there\u2019s quite a lot of detail still to be filled in. The situation is expected to change \u2013 what you described there \u2013 in 2027 with the removal of this two-year qualifying period. Could you say a little bit more about what we think we do know, though, about the Employment Rights Bill?<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"\"><strong>Susie Munro:<\/strong> So, yeah. The Employment Rights Bill will remove the two-year qualifying period for unfair dismissal, and the Government has said that there will be a new initial period of employment. And to quote what they say about that, it\u2019ll be a \u2018lighter touch process for employers to follow to dismiss an employee who is not right for the job.\u2019 But we don\u2019t know much more than that. We don\u2019t know how long that initial period of employment is going to be. The Government has said that their preferred option is 9 months but that is yet to be confirmed.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"\"><strong>Robert Shore:<\/strong> Yeah. So actually, just trying to put those two ideas together, what does it mean then if it\u2019s 9 months and this is going to be in the Bill (or in the secondary legislation), but it\u2019s also a day one right. So is it day one or is it 9 months?<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"\"><strong>Susie Munro:<\/strong> So that\u2019s just not clear at the moment. All we know is that the Government has committed to removing the two-year qualifying period and saying unfair dismissal is a day one right, presumably during the initial period.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"\"><strong>Robert Shore:<\/strong> And that initial period would be 9 months?<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"\"><strong>Susie Munro:<\/strong> Well, we don\u2019t know.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"\"><strong>Robert Shore:<\/strong> That\u2019s where the 9 months is, if it\u2019s 9 months?<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"\"><strong>Susie Munro:<\/strong> Yes. So the initial period of employment, we don\u2019t know how long that\u2019s going to be but yeah, let\u2019s say it\u2019s 9 months \u2018cause that\u2019s what the Government has suggested. During the initial period employees will be able to claim unfair dismissal but there will be this lighter touch approach, which presumably means that it\u2019ll be easier for employers to defend a claim of unfair dismissal. But we just don\u2019t know what it means yet.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"\"><strong>Robert Shore:<\/strong> Okay. But there is a day one right then that means you could potentially claim unfair dismissal. However, during this initial period of employment, which may be 9 months \u2013 that\u2019s what\u2019s been suggested at the moment \u2013 there would be a slightly different approach to that within employment tribunals?<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"\"><strong>Susie Munro:<\/strong> Yeah. So it could be that there is the introduction of a minimum procedure to follow which is in some way less onerous than current requirements. Or there could be some kind of lower standard for employers to meet for a dismissal during the initial period to be seen to be fair. But whatever it is, there\u2019s going to be more scrutiny of how an employer has acted in the early stages of employment.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"\">And in preparation for that, it\u2019s a good idea for employers to make sure that their probationary procedures are tightened up. So we\u2019re going to look at some cases today that show that it\u2019s already a good idea now to make sure you\u2019ve got good probationary procedures in place, regardless of changes under the Employment Rights Bill. In these cases we\u2019re going to see that there are legal risks that could have been avoided if the people involved had followed some stronger probationary processes.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"\"><strong>Robert Shore: <\/strong>Right. Susie then, let\u2019s start with a case where the employee was actually able to claim unfair dismissal.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"\"><strong>Susie Munro:<\/strong> Yes. So this is a set of circumstances that hopefully won\u2019t occur very often. There were some extraordinary delays, which meant that when the employer tried to apply its probation rules to an employee, they had actually already gained the right to claim unfair dismissal. So it\u2019s an unfortunate situation for the employer but it\u2019s helpful for us to highlight the difference in how employers can deal with dismissals during the first two years compared to dismissing employees once they have got the right to claim unfair dismissal. So, the employer in this case is the Metropolitan Police. It\u2019s Bastin and the Commissioner of the Police of the Metropolis. So, Mr Bastin<br>worked in the National Counter Terrorism Security Office as a delivery support officer. And there was a structure to follow for his probationary period. So, they held 3-month and 6-month review meetings, and he was told that there were concerns about his progress. So weekly review meetings were then held and there was a training plan put in place.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"\"><strong>Robert Shore: <\/strong>Okay. So far, so good. That sounds like an appropriate way to deal with performance concerns.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"\"><strong>Susie Munro:<\/strong> Yeah. So they were following a reasonable procedure at that stage. The performance concerns continued and Mr Bastin\u2019s probationary period was extended twice. So that meant, because of the extension, it actually got to 17 months after he\u2019d started when a meeting was held at the end of the probationary period. And the outcome of that meeting was that the manager said that she was going to recommend dismissal. So she was going to submit paperwork to HR and seek their views on whether there was a case for recommending dismissal. So they needed to hold another dismissal meeting for the final decision to be made.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"\">So it was already a long probationary period with the two extensions, but for reasons that aren\u2019t clear from the judgement, there was then a further 15-month delay before the dismissal meeting took place. And during that time Mr Bastin carried on working without any more performance review meetings being held. So he\u2019d started work in September 2021 and the dismissal meeting wasn\u2019t held until May 2024, when he already had well over two years\u2019 service.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"\"><strong>Robert Shore:<\/strong> Right. So he\u2019s obviously already qualified for protection from unfair dismissal.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"\"><strong>Susie Munro:<\/strong> That\u2019s right. So then the dismissal meeting was held. At the meeting the dismissal manager apologized for the delay but said that the hearing was only going to be considering his performance up to the end of the extended probationary period. So they weren\u2019t going to take into account any evidence of his more recent performance and whether he had made an improvement in the time since the probationary period. And on that basis, the decision was made to dismiss him.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"\"><strong>Robert Shore: <\/strong>Whereupon Mr Bastin brought an unfair dismissal claim and, not surprisingly perhaps, that was successful.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"\"><strong>Susie Munro: <\/strong>Yes. So, while Mr Bastin\u2019s performance was a potentially fair reason for his dismissal, the tribunal held that the police force should have considered his recent performance and whether that was a sufficient reason to dismiss him. So it should have informed him of any ongoing issues and given him the opportunity to respond and the opportunity to improve if there were still issues.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"\">So, in an unfair dismissal case the employer has to show that they\u2019ve acted reasonable in dismissing the employee for that potentially fair reason, and in this case it just wasn\u2019t reasonable just to look at his performance from his probationary period, which had obviously ended 15 months earlier.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"\">And then for the procedure to be fair, the tribunal found that the Met Police should have considered whether there were any alternative roles that might have been suitable for Mr Bastin. So that\u2019s not something you\u2019d need to do for a dismissal during the first two years when the employee can\u2019t challenge the procedure, but the Met Police is obviously a large organisation and that was a relevant factor when looking at whether they\u2019d carried out a fair procedure.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"\"><strong>Robert Shore:<\/strong> Yes. So this really illustrates the different approach an employer can take if they are addressing performance issues in the first two years of employment. Once those two years have passed, they then have to show that they have a fair reason for dismissal, that it is reasonable to dismiss for that reason, and that they have followed a fair procedure. Have I got that right?<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"\"><strong>Susie Munro:<\/strong> Yes. The tribunal in this case actually set out what the purpose of a probationary period is, explaining that employers have more flexibility before unfair dismissal protection kicks in. So I\u2019ll just read out some of what they said. They said, \u2018The point of a probationary period is to see how the employee performs and whether they show improvement after training and guidance.\u2019 And they went on to say, \u2018An employer can decide that the employment is not working out and terminate the contract without having to follow the procedures that would be required for an employee with employment protection rights.\u2019 So in delaying the decision for so long, the Met had lost the opportunity to do that.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"\"><strong>Robert Shore:<\/strong> Right. Now, obviously what you\u2019ve just described there will change will the passage of the Employment Rights Bill, although as we\u2019ve said, we don\u2019t know exactly how. But there will be this lighter touch process, whatever that\u2019s going to be.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"\">Right. I think we\u2019ve said as much as we can about that one. So our next case is about someone who did not have the right to claim unfair dismissal but who brought claims for discrimination and victimisation.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"\"><strong>Susie Munro:<\/strong> That\u2019s right. This is Benassi and Maximus UK Services Ltd. So, Ms Benassi was an employment advisor for Maximus UK Services Ltd. basically, her relationship with her manager didn\u2019t get off to a good start. So, Ms Benassi was 18 years old at the time, and she was the youngest person in the team. She felt a bit self-conscious about this and specifically asked her manager not to tell the rest of the team how old she was. The team were told, and then she made a complaint to the manager, as a result of which her line manager was changed. Then there were a number of other incidents. She felt that she was being targeted by the former manager, and she raised a grievance.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"\">So, the grievance specifically included a reference to her age. She said she believed that the manager would not have treated her like that had she been older. So she\u2019s made an allegation of age discrimination there.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"\"><strong>Robert Shore: <\/strong>Right. And presumably that wasn\u2019t the end of it? Things didn\u2019t improve?<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"\"><strong>Susie Munro: <\/strong>No. Following the grievance, things got worse. She was subjected to what you might call micro-management. So she had daily meeting with both her new manager and the former manager, and she was singled out for criticism. For example, she was criticised or told that she shouldn\u2019t be wearing trainers when other people were wearing trainers who weren\u2019t being spoken to. Things like she was emailed by her formed manager to say that she\u2019d been spotted swinging on her chair. Just very minor things.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"\">The normal probation period was 6 months but at a probation meeting after less than 3 months it was decided to terminate her employment, and this was said to be due to her performance. And the outcome letter mentioned a number of things, a number of<br>specific issues, like she had had breakfast after the start of her shift, and she had breached the dress code (and that was the reference to her wearing trainers once).<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"\">So interestingly, the company did engage an external HR company who advised on the situation. And the HR advisor said she had some concerns over the decision to dismiss. She pointed out that the incidents referred to didn\u2019t seem serious enough for a dismissal. For example, Ms Benassi had only worn trainers once. She hadn\u2019t eaten<br>breakfast again during her shift after she\u2019d been spoken to about that. But regardless of this advice, the company went ahead with the dismissal against the advice of the HR advisor.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"\"><strong>Robert Shore:<\/strong> Right. But it\u2019s only a few months into employment, so she\u2019s well under the two years required to claim unfair dismissal. But she was still able to challenge her dismissal. Can you tell us why?<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"\"><strong>Susie Munro:<\/strong> Yeah. So, Ms Benassi claimed harassment on grounds of age, and victimisation. So the harassment claim failed. The tribunal said that while there was a hostile working environment, there was no evidence that this was because of her age. But her victimisation claim was successful. So, victimisation is where someone is<br>subjected to a detriment because they\u2019ve complained about discrimination. In this case, she was dismissed because she\u2019d raised a grievance alleging harassment because of her age.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"\"><strong>Robert Shore: <\/strong>Okay. And so it\u2019s irrelevant that that harassment claim failed. She doesn\u2019t have to show that she was discriminated against, just that she complained about it?<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"\"><strong>Susie Munro:<\/strong> Yes. And that she was dismissed because of that complaint. So, the tribunal accepted that she was treated differently after bringing the grievance. So there were daily meetings and the critical emails and so on. And the tribunal found that the dismissal was based on minor or one-off incidents. There had been a clear alternative to dismissing Ms Benassi, and that would have been to just follow the normal procedures, continue with the probation periods to the normal six\u0002month stage. And the most obvious reason, they thought, for how the company had treated Ms Benassi was because she had raised that grievance.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"\"><strong>Robert Shore:<\/strong> So it\u2019s a good illustration of why you need to act reasonably and fairly even before the two years are up. <\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"\"><strong>Susie Munro:<\/strong> Yes. So if the company had had evidence of genuine performance or conduct issues, if they\u2019d followed a procedure that allowed her to improve, they would have been in a stronger position to defend a victimisation claim, \u2018cause they might have been able to show that the dismissal was because of her performance or conduct and not because she had raised a grievance.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"\"><strong>Robert Shore:<\/strong> So, we have one further case, and this is another discrimination case, I think?<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"\"><strong>Susie Munro: <\/strong>Yes. So this is Stanley and The Village Bakery. Mr Stanley was taken on as a production operative for a large bakery. So this is a large\u0002scale production line packing break for retail, rather than a small village bakery as the name would suggest.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"\">So, Mr Stanley is visually impaired. So he has some peripheral vision but he\u2019s registered blind. When he started, he informed the employer that he had a central vision problem. And because of that, he found it difficult to keep up with the pace of the production. So, his role involved moving hot bread to a cooling area, moving bread<br>around on trolleys, putting bread onto a conveyor belt. And he was having trouble keeping up with the pace of the fast production line. He was finding it difficult to kind of learn from other people how to do things in the most efficient way \u2018cause he wasn\u2019t really able to watch how other people were doing things.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"\">So there were some complaints. So, a supervisor reported to Mr Stanley\u2019s manager that there\u2019d been some kind of near misses with trolleys. He had crashed trolleys into machinery, things like bread falling off trolleys. But importantly, nobody actually raised this with Mr Stanley himself. So it seems that he had very little supervision, very little support. He was making mistakes but nothing was really being done about it.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"\">So there weren\u2019t any discussions with him about what issues he might be having because of his visual impairment. So, after 6 weeks at a probationary review meeting, he was basically dismissed. He was told that he was dismissed for not meeting the required standard.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"\"><strong>Robert Shore:<\/strong> Right. So this sounds like a clear case where there should at least have been a discussion with him about reasonable adjustments.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"\"><strong>Susie Munro:<\/strong> Yes. It was clear that he had a disability. He\u2019d informed them of his visual impairment when he started the job, and it should have been clear, obviously, that it was having an impact on him being able to learn the job and carry out the required tasks. But there was no discussion with him about the impact of his disability and whether any support was needed, what that support might be. So yeah, a clear case of failure to make reasonable adjustments.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"\"><strong>Robert Shore:<\/strong> So, did the tribunal go into what kind of adjustments should have been considered?<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"\"><strong>Susie Munro:<\/strong> It did, yes. So it identified some. One of the reasonable adjustments it identified was that he should have had a longer probation period. So, they\u2019d noted that he had previously worked in a similar role in a different factory setting, and there was nothing to say that he wouldn\u2019t have actually been able to perform the work given additional time to familiarize himself with the processes and the environment. Things like being more familiar with the layout could have avoided collisions. So yeah, it wasn\u2019t just the case that his visual impairment meant that he was never going to be able to do this job. But rather than giving him extra time, the company had actually cut short his probationary period.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"\">The tribunal also said that informing his colleagues kind of officially of his visual impairment and his particular needs, and also giving him a high-visibility jacket, would have potentially helped because colleagues would have been more aware of him. They would have been reminded of his disability so could have just been more aware<br>about where he was and what he was doing. That could have prevented some issues.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"\">And also the tribunal said it would have been a reasonable adjustment to provide him with a support worker to work alongside him, perhaps on a temporary basis, correcting him when necessary, showing him better ways of doing things, just while he learnt the role.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"\"><strong>Robert Shore: <\/strong>And so Mr Stanley, I think, also succeeded with a claim for discrimination arising from his disability?<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"\"><strong>Susie Munro: <\/strong>Yes. So this is a separate type of disability discrimination claim. The tribunal found that dismissing him after six weeks without providing any reasonable adjustments was not proportionate. So if there\u2019s no discussion or consideration even of reasonable adjustments, an employer is always going to struggle to argue that they\u2019re justified in dismissing someone where that is something that\u2019s arising from<br>their disability.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"\">So in this case they weren\u2019t able to rely on health and safety risks as a justification for dismissing him, \u2018cause they hadn\u2019t actually carried out any risk assessments.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"\"><strong>Robert Shore:<\/strong> So, this is another example of where it\u2019s risky to dismiss during the probation period, even though the employee won\u2019t be able to claim unfair dismissal.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"\"><strong>Susie Munro: <\/strong>Yeah. If the employer had considered the reasons behind Mr Stanley\u2019s performance issues and put some effort into thinking about how to support him, they could have avoided a claim. And aside from that, aside from the risks of a legal claim, there are efficiency and cost implications of having that high turnover that you might have if you\u2019re too quick to dismiss new employees without giving them proper support and a proper chance to actually prove themselves in the role.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"\">So it\u2019s just general good practice to avoid legal issues, and also that kind of thing is going to help with being prepared for the changes under the Employment Rights Bill. So, if you are always clear about the reason for the dismissal, make sure that you can explain and evidence the reason that you\u2019re dismissing someone, obviously make sure that that reason isn\u2019t discriminatory and that it\u2019s not victimisation. So that\u2019s often going to be about training and support for line managers.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"\"><strong>Robert Shore:<\/strong> Yes. So there again you\u2019ve mentioned the Employment Rights Bill, which is a topic that\u2019s coming up quite a lot at the moment, isn\u2019t it? So perhaps, Susie, you could just sum up again what employers can do to prepare \u2013 you\u2019ve mentioned some things there \u2013 for the expected changes around probationary periods?<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"\"><strong>Susie Munro:<\/strong> Yes. So, they key things is that employees are going to have more opportunity to challenge a dismissal if they\u2019re dismissed in the early stages of their employment. So they won\u2019t have to be able to show that they\u2019ve been discriminated against, for example, or that it was victimisation or an automatic unfair reason for their dismissal. So, what employers can do now in preparation is make sure that they have got really robust procedures in place for the probationary period. So that means making sure that they\u2019ve got supervision and support for employees during that period, make sure that the processes are in place for monitoring employees\u2019 progress. And importantly, are the managers actually following these procedures? Are they asking for HR advice before dismissing somebody? And if they have asked for HR advice, are they actually following that advice?<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"\">So having those kind of strong procedures in place will help to be able to show that you\u2019ve identified a fair reason for dismissal and that you have acted reasonably and fairly.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"\">Having said all that, we don\u2019t know what the new procedures are going to be, but that is just good practice that I think will put employers in a strong position for any changes that are going to come.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"\">We should probably also say that employers might want to focus a bit on their recruitment procedures. So are you doing enough to make sure that you\u2019re hiring the right people in the first place to reduce the likelihood of needing to dismiss somebody at an early stage in their employment?<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"\"><strong>Robert Shore: <\/strong>That all sounds like very good advice. Thank you so much, Susie.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"\"><strong>Susie Munro:<\/strong> Thank you.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"\"><strong>Robert Shore: <\/strong>As ever, we have lots of supporting materials on the Brightmine website, and I\u2019ll put links to some of those in the show notes. And we will of course continue to track the Employment Rights Bill as it completes its passage through Parliament. Check our On Your Radar feature for news on that.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"\">All that remains to be said is, until next time.<\/p>\n<\/details>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\" id=\"speakers\">Brightmine host<\/h2>\n\n\n\n<div class=\"wp-block-group alignwide is-nowrap is-layout-flex wp-container-core-group-is-layout-6c531013 wp-block-group-is-layout-flex\">\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image aligncenter size-thumbnail is-resized is-style-rounded\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"150\" height=\"150\" src=\"https:\/\/cdn.brightmine.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2025\/01\/17154338\/Robert_Shore-150x150.webp\" alt=\"Robert Shore, HR Market Insights Editor at Brightmine\" class=\"wp-image-10115\" style=\"object-fit:cover;width:100px;height:100px\"\/><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"has-text-align-left\"><strong>Robert Shore<\/strong><br>HR Markets Insights Editor, Brightmine<\/p>\n<\/div>\n\n\n\n<h3 class=\"wp-block-heading\">Guest speakers<\/h3>\n\n\n\n<div class=\"wp-block-group is-nowrap is-layout-flex wp-container-core-group-is-layout-6c531013 wp-block-group-is-layout-flex\">\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image aligncenter size-full is-resized is-style-rounded\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"800\" height=\"800\" src=\"https:\/\/cdn.brightmine.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2024\/09\/18071358\/susie-munro.webp\" alt=\"Susie Munro, Senior legal editor at Brightmine\" class=\"wp-image-8938\" style=\"object-fit:cover;width:100px;height:100px\" srcset=\"https:\/\/cdn.brightmine.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2024\/09\/18071358\/susie-munro.webp 800w, https:\/\/cdn.brightmine.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2024\/09\/18071358\/susie-munro-300x300.webp 300w, https:\/\/cdn.brightmine.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2024\/09\/18071358\/susie-munro-150x150.webp 150w, https:\/\/cdn.brightmine.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2024\/09\/18071358\/susie-munro-768x768.webp 768w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 800px) 100vw, 800px\" \/><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"has-text-align-left\"><strong>Susie Munro<\/strong><br>Senior Legal Editor, Brightmine<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n\n\n\n<div class=\"wp-block-column lnrs-hide-block-on-mobile is-layout-flow wp-block-column-is-layout-flow\" style=\"border-left-color:var(--wp--preset--color--secondary-gray);border-left-width:2px;padding-left:10px;flex-basis:30%\">\n<div class=\"wp-block-group has-global-padding is-layout-constrained wp-block-group-is-layout-constrained wp-container-3 is-position-sticky\">\n<div class=\"wp-block-group has-secondary-gray-background-color has-background has-global-padding is-layout-constrained wp-container-core-group-is-layout-db4c44a6 wp-block-group-is-layout-constrained\" style=\"border-radius:14px;padding-top:10px;padding-right:10px;padding-bottom:10px;padding-left:10px\">\n<div class=\"wp-block-group is-vertical is-layout-flex wp-container-core-group-is-layout-4b827052 wp-block-group-is-layout-flex\">\n<p style=\"margin-bottom:5px;font-style:normal;font-weight:400\" class=\"\">In this resource:<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"has-primary-black-color has-text-color has-link-color wp-elements-459ffb2a7b3dc338c93226d3be8270c8\" style=\"margin-top:5px;margin-bottom:5px;font-size:clamp(14px, 0.875rem + ((1vw - 3.2px) * 0.274), 16px);line-height:1.3\"><a href=\"#listen\">Listen now<\/a><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"has-primary-black-color has-text-color has-link-color wp-elements-53b045a32da828cda288ce2a72946a2d\" style=\"margin-top:5px;margin-bottom:5px;font-size:clamp(14px, 0.875rem + ((1vw - 3.2px) * 0.274), 16px);line-height:1.3\"><a href=\"#transcript\">Transcript<\/a><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"has-primary-black-color has-text-color has-link-color wp-elements-71518ad09f03d83428d3713a9cbb6f21\" style=\"margin-top:5px;margin-bottom:5px;font-size:clamp(14px, 0.875rem + ((1vw - 3.2px) * 0.274), 16px);line-height:1.3\"><a href=\"#speakers\">Speakers<\/a><\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n\n\n\n<div class=\"wp-block-group has-bleach-white-background-color has-background has-global-padding is-layout-constrained wp-container-core-group-is-layout-a36fa716 wp-block-group-is-layout-constrained\" style=\"border-radius:14px;padding-top:10px;padding-right:15px;padding-bottom:15px;padding-left:15px\">\n<h3 class=\"wp-block-heading\">Navigate HR complexity with confidence<\/h3>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"\">With Brightmine, you can build powerful people strategies, implement best practices and set your organisation up for a brighter future.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"\">Learn how our tools, resources and automation can empower you and your team.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<div class=\"wp-block-buttons is-layout-flex wp-block-buttons-is-layout-flex\">\n<div class=\"wp-block-button\"><a class=\"wp-block-button__link wp-element-button\" href=\"\/uk\/solutions\/?intcmp=cta|blog|solutions|learn-more\" style=\"border-radius:25px\">Learn more<\/a><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n\n\n\n<div class=\"wp-block-group lnrs-hide-block-on-mobile has-global-padding is-layout-constrained wp-container-core-group-is-layout-ad1af2a0 wp-block-group-is-layout-constrained\" style=\"margin-top:0;margin-bottom:0;padding-top:0;padding-bottom:0\">\n<hr class=\"wp-block-separator has-text-color has-secondary-gray-color has-alpha-channel-opacity has-secondary-gray-background-color has-background\" style=\"margin-top:10px;margin-bottom:10px\"\/>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"\">Read more articles:<\/p>\n\n\n\n<div class=\"wp-block-query is-layout-flow wp-block-query-is-layout-flow\"><ul class=\"wp-block-post-template is-layout-flow wp-container-core-post-template-is-layout-ea1fff98 wp-block-post-template-is-layout-flow\"><li class=\"wp-block-post post-15467 resources type-resources status-publish has-post-thumbnail hentry category-tools topic-benchmarking\">\n<h2 style=\"font-size:clamp(14px, 0.875rem + ((1vw - 3.2px) * 0.274), 16px);line-height:1.3;text-decoration:underline; margin-top:10px;margin-bottom:10px;margin-left:0;margin-right:0;\" class=\"wp-block-post-title\"><a href=\"https:\/\/www.brightmine.com\/uk\/resources\/total-rewards\/benchmarking\/survey-analysis-and-benchmarking-data\/\" target=\"_self\" >Survey analysis and Benchmarking data: The complete list<\/a><\/h2>\n<\/li><li class=\"wp-block-post post-15713 resources type-resources status-publish has-post-thumbnail hentry category-podcasts tag-employment-rights-act topic-onboarding\">\n<h2 style=\"font-size:clamp(14px, 0.875rem + ((1vw - 3.2px) * 0.274), 16px);line-height:1.3;text-decoration:underline; margin-top:10px;margin-bottom:10px;margin-left:0;margin-right:0;\" class=\"wp-block-post-title\"><a href=\"https:\/\/www.brightmine.com\/uk\/resources\/talent-management\/talent-acquisition\/onboarding\/why-hr-should-review-probationary-process-before-july-2026\/\" target=\"_self\" >Why HR should review its probationary process before July 2026<\/a><\/h2>\n<\/li><li class=\"wp-block-post post-15715 resources type-resources status-publish has-post-thumbnail hentry category-c-and-i tag-employment-rights-act topic-employment-law-updates\">\n<h2 style=\"font-size:clamp(14px, 0.875rem + ((1vw - 3.2px) * 0.274), 16px);line-height:1.3;text-decoration:underline; margin-top:10px;margin-bottom:10px;margin-left:0;margin-right:0;\" class=\"wp-block-post-title\"><a href=\"https:\/\/www.brightmine.com\/uk\/resources\/hr-compliance\/employment-law-updates\/employment-rights-act-2025-your-questions-answered\/\" target=\"_self\" >Employment Rights Act 2025 &#8211; your questions answered<\/a><\/h2>\n<\/li><\/ul><\/div>\n<\/div>\n\n\n\n<div class=\"wp-block-group has-global-padding is-layout-constrained wp-block-group-is-layout-constrained\" style=\"margin-top:var(--wp--preset--spacing--40);margin-bottom:var(--wp--preset--spacing--40)\">\n<p class=\"\"><a href=\"#top\">Go back to the top<\/a><\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n\n\n\n<div class=\"wp-block-group has-primary-white-background-color has-background has-global-padding is-layout-constrained wp-container-core-group-is-layout-4b7a3f7f wp-block-group-is-layout-constrained\" style=\"border-radius:25px;margin-top:var(--wp--preset--spacing--30);margin-bottom:var(--wp--preset--spacing--30);padding-top:var(--wp--preset--spacing--30);padding-right:var(--wp--preset--spacing--30);padding-bottom:var(--wp--preset--spacing--30);padding-left:var(--wp--preset--spacing--30)\">\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\">You may also be interested in&#8230;<\/h2>\n\n\n<section id=\"resources-search-filter\" class=\"wp-elements-bb0a5f64e0c13f2cf3eca17c16bb3aed wp-block-brightmine-resources-filter has-text-color has-primary-black-color has-background has-primary-white-background-color\">\n\n\n<div class=\"ajax-filter\">\n<div class=\"lnrs-resources-search-filter  editor-posts-filtered-topics \">\n\t\t<div class=\"search_terms_bottom\">\n\t\t\t<div class=\"bottom_left\">\n\t\t\t<div class=\"search_terms_result_count\">\n\t\t\t\t\n\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t<div class=\"bottom_right\">\n\t\t\t\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/div>\n<\/div>\n\n\t<div class=\"loader-container\">\n\t\t<span class=\"loader\" style=\"display: none;\"><\/span>\n\t<\/div>\n\n\n\t<div class=\"lnrs-resource-filter-widget__container\">\n\n\t\t\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"lnrs-resource-hub-widget__resource\" style=\"background-color: #E9E7E4\">\n\t\t\t\t\t<a href=\"https:\/\/www.brightmine.com\/uk\/resources\/hr-compliance\/pay-and-benefits-compliance\/minimum-wage\/four-rate-rises-for-2026-you-should-watch-out-for\/\"><div class=\"lnrs-resource-hub-widget__resource_image\" style=\"background-image: url(https:\/\/cdn.brightmine.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2026\/02\/20085647\/team-discussion-in-modern-office-lounge-area.webp);\"><\/div><\/a>\n\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"lnrs-resource-hub-widget__inner_content\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"content-top\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"lnrs-resource-hub-widget__categories\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<span class=\"lnrs-resource-hub-widget__category\">Whitepapers<\/span>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<h3 class=\"title\" style=\"color: #00728B\"><a href=\"https:\/\/www.brightmine.com\/uk\/resources\/hr-compliance\/pay-and-benefits-compliance\/minimum-wage\/four-rate-rises-for-2026-you-should-watch-out-for\/\">Four rate rises for 2026 you should watch out for<\/a><\/h3>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t<p style=\"color: #000000\">Are you ready for 2026 minimum wage changes? Learn about four anticipated rate rises and how to stay &#8230;<\/p>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\n\t\t\t\t\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"lnrs-resource-hub-widget__resource\" style=\"background-color: #E9E7E4\">\n\t\t\t\t\t<a href=\"https:\/\/www.brightmine.com\/uk\/resources\/talent-management\/talent-acquisition\/onboarding\/why-hr-should-review-probationary-process-before-july-2026\/\"><div class=\"lnrs-resource-hub-widget__resource_image\" style=\"background-image: url(https:\/\/cdn.brightmine.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/1997\/04\/19130515\/woman-studying-with-laptop-and-notebook-2.webp);\"><\/div><\/a>\n\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"lnrs-resource-hub-widget__inner_content\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"content-top\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"lnrs-resource-hub-widget__categories\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<span class=\"lnrs-resource-hub-widget__category\">Podcasts<\/span>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<h3 class=\"title\" style=\"color: #00728B\"><a href=\"https:\/\/www.brightmine.com\/uk\/resources\/talent-management\/talent-acquisition\/onboarding\/why-hr-should-review-probationary-process-before-july-2026\/\">Why HR should review its probationary process before July 2026<\/a><\/h3>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t<p style=\"color: #000000\">Learn how upcoming July 2026 changes impact HR probation practices. Join robert and Stephen as they explore compliance, &#8230;<\/p>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\n\t\t\t\t\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"lnrs-resource-hub-widget__resource\" style=\"background-color: #E9E7E4\">\n\t\t\t\t\t<a href=\"https:\/\/www.brightmine.com\/uk\/resources\/talent-management\/employee-engagement\/wellbeing-that-works-what-the-research-tells-us\/\"><div class=\"lnrs-resource-hub-widget__resource_image\" style=\"background-image: url(https:\/\/cdn.brightmine.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2025\/06\/27081837\/smiling-hr-colleagues-at-laptop.webp);\"><\/div><\/a>\n\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"lnrs-resource-hub-widget__inner_content\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"content-top\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"lnrs-resource-hub-widget__categories\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<span class=\"lnrs-resource-hub-widget__category\">Podcasts<\/span>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<h3 class=\"title\" style=\"color: #00728B\"><a href=\"https:\/\/www.brightmine.com\/uk\/resources\/talent-management\/employee-engagement\/wellbeing-that-works-what-the-research-tells-us\/\">Wellbeing that works &#8211; what the research tells us<\/a><\/h3>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t<p style=\"color: #000000\">Brightmine analysts Hannah Mason and Vernujaa Nagandiram join host Robert to share fresh research on what truly supports &#8230;<\/p>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\n\t\n<\/div>\n<\/section><\/div>\n\n\n\n<div class=\"wp-block-group alignfull has-primary-white-background-color has-background has-global-padding is-layout-constrained wp-container-core-group-is-layout-0fd240ca wp-block-group-is-layout-constrained\" id=\"newsletter\" style=\"margin-top:0;margin-bottom:0;padding-top:var(--wp--preset--spacing--40);padding-right:var(--wp--preset--spacing--30);padding-bottom:var(--wp--preset--spacing--40);padding-left:var(--wp--preset--spacing--30)\">\n<h2 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\/><\/span><\/div>\n<div><span class=\"wpcf7-form-control-wrap\" data-name=\"EmailAddress\"><input size=\"40\" maxlength=\"320\" class=\"wpcf7-form-control wpcf7-email wpcf7-validates-as-required wpcf7-text wpcf7-validates-as-email\" aria-required=\"true\" aria-invalid=\"false\" placeholder=\"Business email address\" value=\"\" type=\"email\" name=\"EmailAddress\" \/><\/span><\/div>\n<div><span class=\"wpcf7-form-control-wrap\" data-name=\"Country\"><select class=\"wpcf7-form-control wpcf7-select wpcf7-validates-as-required\" aria-required=\"true\" aria-invalid=\"false\" name=\"Country\"><option value=\"\">Your country \/ region<\/option><option value=\"United Kingdom\">United Kingdom<\/option><option value=\"United States\">United States<\/option><option value=\"Afghanistan\">Afghanistan<\/option><option value=\"Aland Islands\">Aland Islands<\/option><option value=\"Albania\">Albania<\/option><option value=\"Algeria\">Algeria<\/option><option value=\"American Samoa\">American 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State\">Bolivia, Plurinational State<\/option><option value=\"Bonaire, Sint Eustatius and Saba\">Bonaire, Sint Eustatius and Saba<\/option><option value=\"Bosnia and Herzegovina\">Bosnia and Herzegovina<\/option><option value=\"Botswana\">Botswana<\/option><option value=\"Bouvet Island\">Bouvet Island<\/option><option value=\"Brazil\">Brazil<\/option><option value=\"British Indian Ocean Territory\">British Indian Ocean Territory<\/option><option value=\"Brunei\n    Darussalam\">Brunei\n    Darussalam<\/option><option value=\"Bulgaria\">Bulgaria<\/option><option value=\"Burkina Faso\">Burkina Faso<\/option><option value=\"Burundi\">Burundi<\/option><option value=\"Cambodia\">Cambodia<\/option><option value=\"Cameroon\">Cameroon<\/option><option value=\"Canada\">Canada<\/option><option value=\"Cape Verde\">Cape Verde<\/option><option value=\"Cayman Islands\">Cayman Islands<\/option><option value=\"Central African Republic\">Central African Republic<\/option><option 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practices.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":11,"featured_media":14581,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","template":"wp-custom-template-new-resources","categories":[19],"tags":[],"topic":[23,91],"class_list":["post-15158","resources","type-resources","status-publish","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-podcasts","topic-employee-engagement","topic-onboarding"],"_lnrs_read_more":"","yoast_head":"<!-- This site is optimized with the Yoast SEO plugin v27.0 - https:\/\/yoast.com\/product\/yoast-seo-wordpress\/ -->\n<title>Probationary periods\u00a0-\u00a0lessons\u00a0from\u00a0recent tribunal cases | Brightmine<\/title>\n<meta name=\"description\" content=\"Explore practical HR lessons from tribunal decisions on probation periods and understand legal changes affecting unfair dismissal claims.\" \/>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" 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