tribunal

[dan no1]

i was unfairly dismissed from work and they paid me off �1000 so i wouldnt go to a tribunal. they said when i cash the cheque, that is an agreement that i wont take it any further, but i haven't signed anything. would i get more that �1000 if it went to court? are they just taking the michael out of me?

[loonytunes]

Depends on the reasons they give as to what you may receive at a tribunal. Some awards are unlimited, others are. The most important thing is that you need professional advice rather than asking anonymous people on this site

[dan no1]

ok thanks looney tunes. might go the citizens advice tomorrow!

[PatriciaH]

Ive known someone be offered money before it goes to tribunal ... someone took what was offered and wel never know what the outcome could/would of been. On the other hand i told previous employer to " do one" ( in a nicer way )when offered out of court... tribunal awarded TWICE what previous employer offered so its hard to advise what YOU should do, If it was me id take it all the way

[maxine55]

i took my employer to court and won �7,000 however they never paid and shut he company and then opened it again under another name and there is nothing i can do so i would take the money at least you get some thing then

[atolhurst]

You can be paid off but you have to sign a compromise agreement basically saying you agree not to take legal action. For it to be valid however you HAVE to take legal advice before signing it. This is the law. Thus, cashing the cheque doesn't signify acceptance. However, if you have verbally said you won't pursue anything that you have to think about the moral argument.

As to whether you'd get more than �1,000 from them depends on why you were unfairly dismissed and what the tribunal thinks. Bear in mind to go to court though costs time and money so consider that before deciding whether to pursue this. You're also unlikely to get a reference in from them if it goes this way and any future employer might look unfavourably at a candidate who was in legal action against a former employer.