[{"data":1,"prerenderedAt":-1},["ShallowReactive",2],{"doc-seo-279803-105":3,"detail-sidebar-cat-1-en-105":81,"doc-detail-279803-en":126},{"code":4,"msg":5,"data":6},0,"ok",{"site_id":7,"language":8,"slug":9,"title":10,"keywords":11,"description":12,"schema_data":13,"social_meta":74,"head_meta":76,"extra_data":78,"updated_unix":80},105,"en","terminating-employment-small-business-fair-dismissal-code","Terminating Employment - Small Business Fair Dismissal Code","","Terminating Employment provides guidance on handling employee separation—resignation, redundancy, or dismissal—professionally to reduce legal risk and protect employer reputation and workplace morale. It explains how the Small Business Fair Dismissal Code works for employers with fewer than 15 employees, including required steps to assess and record dismissal reasons. It outlines what employees may be owed at termination, what makes an unfair or unlawful dismissal, and key time limits and factors for unfair dismissal claims.",{"@graph":14,"@context":73},[15,34,56],{"@type":16,"itemListElement":17},"BreadcrumbList",[18,23,27,31],{"item":19,"name":20,"@type":21,"position":22},"https://docshare.wps.com","Home","ListItem",1,{"item":24,"name":25,"@type":21,"position":26},"https://docshare.wps.com/template/","Template",2,{"item":28,"name":29,"@type":21,"position":30},"https://docshare.wps.com/template/letters/","Letters",3,{"item":32,"name":10,"@type":21,"position":33},"https://docshare.wps.com/template/terminating-employment-small-business-fair-dismissal-code/279803/",4,{"url":32,"name":10,"@type":35,"image":36,"author":41,"headline":10,"publisher":44,"fileFormat":47,"inLanguage":8,"description":12,"dateModified":48,"datePublished":49,"encodingFormat":47,"isAccessibleForFree":50,"interactionStatistic":51},"DigitalDocument",{"url":37,"@type":38,"width":39,"height":40},"https://docshare.wps.com/thumbnails/terminating-employment-small-business-fair-dismissal-code/279803.png","ImageObject",442,249,{"name":42,"@type":43},"Stanley","Person",{"url":19,"name":45,"@type":46},"DocShare","Organization","application/pdf","2026-10-25","2026-09-16",true,{"@type":52,"interactionType":53,"userInteractionCount":55},"InteractionCounter",{"@type":54},"ViewAction",11,{"@type":57,"mainEntity":58},"FAQPage",[59,65,69],{"name":60,"@type":61,"acceptedAnswer":62},"What is the Small Business Fair Dismissal Code, and does it apply to all employers?","Question",{"text":63,"@type":64},"It applies to small business employers with fewer than 15 employees. The code is not compulsory, but following it helps ensure the dismissal is treated as fair.","Answer",{"name":66,"@type":61,"acceptedAnswer":67},"When does an unfair dismissal claim have to be lodged, and what does the Fair Work Commission consider?",{"text":68,"@type":64},"Unfair dismissal claims must be lodged within 21 days of termination, with possible extensions for exceptional circumstances. The Commission checks whether there was a valid reason, whether the employee was told the reason, warnings, opportunity to respond, support person access, and whether the code was followed for small businesses.",{"name":70,"@type":61,"acceptedAnswer":71},"What makes a dismissal unlawful and what must the employer prove in such a claim?",{"text":72,"@type":64},"A dismissal is unlawful if it is for an unlawful reason or if the employer fails to provide the legally required minimum notice of termination. If an employee claims unlawful dismissal, the employer must prove the alleged discriminatory reason was not a reason for the dismissal.","https://schema.org",{"og:url":32,"og:type":75,"og:title":10,"og:site_name":45,"og:description":12},"article",{"robots":77,"canonical":32},"index,follow",{"doc_id":79,"site_id":7},279803,1789969984,{"code":4,"msg":82,"data":83},"success",[84,88,93,98,103,108,113,117,122],{"id":55,"doc_module":22,"doc_module_name":25,"category_name":85,"show_sort_weight":86,"slug":87},"Presentations",90,"presentations",{"id":89,"doc_module":22,"doc_module_name":25,"category_name":90,"show_sort_weight":91,"slug":92},12,"Resumes",80,"resumes",{"id":94,"doc_module":22,"doc_module_name":25,"category_name":95,"show_sort_weight":96,"slug":97},14,"Invoices",70,"invoices",{"id":99,"doc_module":22,"doc_module_name":25,"category_name":100,"show_sort_weight":101,"slug":102},15,"Posters",60,"posters",{"id":104,"doc_module":22,"doc_module_name":25,"category_name":105,"show_sort_weight":106,"slug":107},16,"Social Media",50,"social-media",{"id":109,"doc_module":22,"doc_module_name":25,"category_name":110,"show_sort_weight":111,"slug":112},17,"Forms",40,"forms",{"id":114,"doc_module":22,"doc_module_name":25,"category_name":29,"show_sort_weight":115,"slug":116},18,30,"letters",{"id":118,"doc_module":22,"doc_module_name":25,"category_name":119,"show_sort_weight":120,"slug":121},21,"Paper Templates",5,"papers-templates",{"id":123,"doc_module":22,"doc_module_name":25,"category_name":124,"show_sort_weight":4,"slug":125},158,"General","general-158",{"code":4,"msg":82,"data":127},{"doc_id":79,"user_id":128,"nickname":42,"user_avatar":129,"doc_module":22,"category_id":114,"category_name":29,"doc_title":10,"doc_description":12,"doc_content":130,"file_id":131,"file_url":132,"file_type":133,"file_size":134,"view_count":55,"is_deleted":4,"is_public":22,"is_downloadable":22,"audit_status":22,"page_count":22,"language":135,"language_code":8,"site_id":7,"html_lang":8,"table_of_contents":136,"faqs":137,"seo_title":138,"seo_description":12,"update_tm":139,"read_time":4},2336477405376,"https://ap-avatar.wpscdn.com/davatar_29158cc5080c5b710cf443261637dec0","Terminating Employment  \nIntroduction  \nRegardless of the reason your employee is leaving-resignation, redundancy or dismissal-it is extremely important that the separation is handled carefully and professionally. If the employee is being dismissed it is important to follow a fair dismissal procedure.  \nThis helps minimise any risks of legal action, protect your reputation as an employer and the reputation of the business, and can also help to keep good workplace morale in diÞcult times.  \nSmall Business Fair Dismissal Code  \nThe Small Business Fair Dismissal Code applies to small  \nbusiness employers with less than 15  \n􀀏  \nTOP  \nemployees. The Code is not compulsory but it is highly recommended that you follow the Code if an employee needs to be dismissed. If the code is followed then the dismissal will be taken to be fair.  \nThe Code provides a checklist to help you assess and record your reasons for dismissing an employee and to help you to be sure that you have followed the Code.  \nWhat to pay employees atthe end of ongoing employment  \nYou may need to pay any or all of the following  \n Accrued Annual Leave  \n Annual Leave Loading  \n  Long Service Leave  \n Payment in lieu of a Notice Period  \n Payment for work performed until time of termination  \n  Superannuation  \n\n| \u003Cbr>􀀑 | RESOURCES AND REFERENCES\u003Cbr>The Small Business Fair Dismissal Code-PDF\u003Cbr>Fair Work Ombudsman fact sheet Termination of employment-PDF Workplace Info – A guide to complying with the Fair Dismissal Code-Website |\n| --- | --- |\n\n􀀏  \nTOP  \nUnfair Dismissal  \nA dismissal is seen as unfair when there is no valid reason for dismissal, the process used by the employer to terminate the employee was harsh, unjust or unreasonable, or the employee was not given a ‘fair go’. A dismissal is also unfair if the dismissal was not in accordance with the Small Business Fair Dismissal Code and the dismissal was not a case of Genuine Redundancy.  \nThe federal industrial laws and Western Australian state industrial laws have procedures which allow employees to bring an action for unfair dismissal if they believe they were unfairly dismissed. Requirements and procedures for lodging and defending unfair dismissal actions can be found on the Fair Work Commission web site or WA Industrial Relations Commission website. There is also a WA speciÕc fact sheet in the resource section below for more information about Western Australia's unfair dismissal laws.  \nAs of 1 July 2009, employees can make a claim for unfair dismissal regardless of the number of employees engaged in the business.  \nNot all employees are able to make an unfair dismissal claim. See the section Who is not eligible to make an unfair dismissal application? In the Fair Work Ombudsman fact sheet‘Termination of employment ‘.  \n\n| \u003Cbr>􀀖 | NOTE\u003Cbr>Minimum employment periods apply before employees are entitled to make a claim for unfair dismissal.\u003Cbr> For businesses with less than 15 employees, the minimum employment period is\u003Cbr>12 months.\u003Cbr> For businesses with 15 employees or more, the minimum employment period is 6 months. |\n| --- | --- |\n\nUnfair dismissal claims must be lodged with the Fair Work Commission within 21 days of the date of the termination. This time limit can be extended by the Fair Work Commission if there are exceptional circumstances.  \nThe Fair Work Commission will look at the following when considering claims:  \n Was there a valid reason for the dismissal?  \n Was the person told the reason for the dismissal?  \n Was the person given any warnings about their performance?  \n Was the person given a chance to respond to the allegation(s)?  \n Was the employee allowed to have a support person present at any discussions about dismissal?  \n Did the employer follow the Small Business Fair Dismissal Code (if the employer is a small business)?  \n Whether the size of the employer’s business or the lack of a dedicated HR person might have impacted the dismissal procedures followed.  \n\n| \u003Cbr>􀀖 | NOTE\u003Cbr>A ","cbCaipp85MMFA54K","https://ap.wps.com/l/cbCaipp85MMFA54K","pdf",1433483,"English","# Terminating Employment\n## Introduction\n## Small Business Fair Dismissal Code\n## What to pay employees at the end of ongoing employment\n## Unfair Dismissal\n## Unlawful dismissal\n## Genuine redundancy","[{\"question\":\"What is the Small Business Fair Dismissal Code, and does it apply to all employers?\",\"answer\":\"It applies to small business employers with fewer than 15 employees. The code is not compulsory, but following it helps ensure the dismissal is treated as fair.\"},{\"question\":\"When does an unfair dismissal claim have to be lodged, and what does the Fair Work Commission consider?\",\"answer\":\"Unfair dismissal claims must be lodged within 21 days of termination, with possible extensions for exceptional circumstances. The Commission checks whether there was a valid reason, whether the employee was told the reason, warnings, opportunity to respond, support person access, and whether the code was followed for small businesses.\"},{\"question\":\"What makes a dismissal unlawful and what must the employer prove in such a claim?\",\"answer\":\"A dismissal is unlawful if it is for an unlawful reason or if the employer fails to provide the legally required minimum notice of termination. If an employee claims unlawful dismissal, the employer must prove the alleged discriminatory reason was not a reason for the dismissal.\"}]","Terminating Employment - Small Business Fair Dismissal Code | PDF",1789527607]