There's usually one. The supervisor who has been late a dozen times since the summer, or the kitchen assistant who still skips the closing checks. You've had the quiet word twice, nothing has changed, and in a team of eight the next step feels like a very big thing to start.

Most small cafés have had a safety net they never knew they were leaning on. An employee needed two years' service to claim unfair dismissal, and plenty of café staff never get there. From 1 January that drops to six months.

That doesn't stop you letting someone go. It means that for anyone past six months you need a fair reason and a fair process, even when you're the investigator, the decision-maker and the only manager. This is general guidance: for a live case, talk to Acas or an employment adviser.

This covers England, Wales and Scotland. Northern Ireland has its own unfair dismissal law, with a qualifying period of usually one year, and the Labour Relations Agency has its own Code of Practice. The 1 January change doesn't apply there.

What changes on 1 January

Section 25 of the Employment Rights Act 2025 cuts the qualifying period from "two years" to "six months", and the commencement regulations bring it in on 1 January 2027. The test is the effective date of termination, the day employment actually ends, so a December dismissal with notice running into January is decided under the new rules. The government's timeline, updated on 22 October when several other dates moved, still lists 1 January.

Acas puts it simply: "Someone will be protected if they already have at least 6 months' service on 1 January 2027." In practice that's anyone continuously employed since on or before 1 July 2026, and later starters reach six months on their own dates. 1 July is a rule of thumb, not a hard line: service counts up to and including the day employment ends, so a 2 July starter who leaves on 1 January qualifies too. Section 25 also scraps the cap on the compensatory award, of which more below.

There's a catch at the six-month line, covered in my guide to the Employment Rights Act and the post on written statements and probation. After a month's service someone is owed at least a week's statutory notice, and if you dismiss without giving it, section 97 counts their service to the date that notice would have ended, which can push a dismissal just short of six months past it.

First, a fair reason

Section 98 of the Employment Rights Act 1996 gives five potentially fair reasons, and you have to show which one applied:

Capability: judged by "skill, aptitude, health or any other physical or mental quality". The barista who still can't follow the recipe card after months of training.
Conduct: persistent lateness, rudeness to customers, ignoring the allergen procedure, theft.
Redundancy: the job genuinely isn't needed. It has its own rules, outside the Acas Code.
A legal reason: they can't do the job lawfully, such as losing the right to work in the UK.
Some other substantial reason: a catch-all.

Then section 98(4) asks whether you acted reasonably in treating that reason as enough to dismiss, "in the circumstances (including the size and administrative resources of the employer's undertaking)".

That bracket gets read as a small-business let-off. It's narrower than that.

The Acas Code of Practice accepts that "it may sometimes not be practicable for all employers to take all of the steps set out in this Code", then says: "That said, whenever a disciplinary or grievance process is being followed it is important to deal with issues fairly." Size can explain having no separate investigator. It doesn't excuse skipping the investigation, not telling someone the allegation, not letting them answer, or not offering an appeal.

What already applies from day one

The six-month rule governs ordinary unfair dismissal only. Three kinds of claim need no service at all.

Automatically unfair reasons. If the main reason is on Acas's list, the dismissal is unfair whatever the process. The list includes "being involved in whistleblowing" (section 103A), "taking action, or proposing to take action, over a health and safety issue" (section 100), "being pregnant or on maternity leave" and "asking for a legal right". In law, that last one covers rights such as notice and holiday (section 104) and the minimum wage (section 104A), as long as the claim is made in good faith. Letting the chef go because they reported the walk-in running warm is the café version.

Discrimination. Equality Act claims run from day one. Acas warns: "Dismissing someone because they're disabled, including some long-term health conditions, could be discrimination."

Wrongful dismissal. A contract claim, mostly about notice, and not the same as unfair dismissal. Under section 86, anyone with a month's service is owed at least a week's notice, or more if their contract says so, unless their conduct was serious enough to end the contract without it.

So the first six months aren't a free-for-all. You can part ways with far less process, but not for one of those reasons and not without the notice you owe.

A fair process in five steps

The standard is the Acas Code of Practice on disciplinary and grievance procedures, the 2015 version (a revised draft closed for consultation on 23 September 2026 and isn't in force). It covers poor performance as well as misconduct, and tribunals take it into account.

1. Investigate

Investigate "without unreasonable delay to establish the facts of the case": the rota, the till reports, a short written account from whoever was on shift. An investigatory meeting "should not by itself result in any disciplinary action", and there's no statutory right to be accompanied at one. Any suspension should be short, on full pay and clearly not a punishment.

2. Write to them

Put the case in writing, with "sufficient information about the alleged misconduct or poor performance and its possible consequences to enable the employee to prepare to answer the case". The Code says "It would normally be appropriate to provide copies of any written evidence". If dismissal is a possible outcome, say so plainly, and give the time, the place and the right to be accompanied.

3. Meeting

Hold it "without unreasonable delay whilst allowing the employee reasonable time to prepare their case". Set out the evidence, then let them answer, ask questions and call relevant witnesses.

Under section 10 of the Employment Relations Act 1999, a worker who reasonably asks can bring a colleague, a trade union official or a union-certified representative to a hearing that could end in a warning or other action, and to an appeal. If the companion can't make your date, you must move to a reasonable time the worker proposes, no more than five working days after the date you first set. The companion can put their case but needn't be allowed to answer questions for them, and a partner or a lawyer isn't a statutory companion.

4. Decision in writing

Take a break before deciding, then confirm the outcome in writing. A dismissal decision "should only be taken by a manager who has the authority to do so", and the letter gives the reasons, the end date, the notice and the right of appeal.

5. Appeal

The employee puts their grounds in writing, and the appeal "should be dealt with impartially and, wherever possible, by a manager who has not previously been involved in the case". The outcome goes in writing too.

When you're the only manager

In misconduct cases, the Code asks for different people to investigate and hold the hearing "where practicable". For small organisations, Acas's guide to discipline and grievances says that if no other manager can hear the appeal, consider whether the owner should: "Whoever hears the appeal should consider it impartially." Its page on appeals suggests an employer "could bring in an external person to carry out the appeal".

So split the roles if you have a business partner or trusted supervisor, line up an HR adviser who can hear an appeal, and write down what you checked and why you decided. Doing it all yourself isn't automatically unfair. It's a risk to manage.

Warnings and gross misconduct

The Code says "it is usual to give the employee a written warning", then a final written warning if things don't improve, or straight to a final warning for a serious first offence. Each says what must change and by when, and "The employee should be told how long the warning will remain current."

No law sets that period. Acas's guide gives an example, not a rule: "a first written warning might be valid for up to six months while a final written warning may remain in force for 12 months (or more in exceptional circumstances)". Set yours in writing, and don't lean on an expired one.

Gross misconduct covers acts that "may call for dismissal without notice for a first offence". The Code's examples are "theft or fraud, physical violence, gross negligence or serious insubordination". Your rules should add café ones: theft from the till or stock, violence or threats, being unfit for work through drink or drugs, and a serious, deliberate breach of food safety or health and safety rules, such as knowingly ignoring the allergen procedure.

Then the line that matters: "But a fair disciplinary process should always be followed, before dismissing for gross misconduct." And if the person in front of you recently raised a safety concern, make very sure the case is about what they did, not what they said.

Capability is a different conversation

Not being good enough at the job isn't misconduct. Acas says employers "should take steps to try and help someone to improve, before starting a formal disciplinary procedure". So: a clear standard, such as what a finished close looks like, training to meet it, a dated review period, and only then warnings.

Sickness is usually capability too. Acas says dismissing someone because their illness stops them doing their job "should be a last resort", and disability brings a duty to make reasonable adjustments. The post on managing sickness absence explains why absence scores shouldn't trigger a disciplinary on their own.

Evidence: the till and the cameras

Theft from the till is the allegation that needs the most care. As I wrote in daily cashing up and till variance, most variance is training or process, not theft. A shortage on someone's shift tells you where to look, not what happened.

Good evidence is specific: the cash-up log, the till report with its voids, refunds and no-sales, who was logged in, and the rota. Footage is usually only fair to use if your team knew about the cameras, and the employee should see the clip you rely on, as the guide to café CCTV explains. And docking final pay is no substitute for the investigation: a deduction needs a written term or agreement in place beforehand, as the rules on wage deductions explain.

What a claim can cost

The basic award follows section 119: for each complete year of service, up to 20, half a week's pay for years aged under 22, one week's pay for years aged 22 to 40, and one and a half weeks' for years aged 41 or over. A week's pay is capped at £751 from 6 April 2026 under the Employment Rights (Increase of Limits) Order 2026, so the most it can be is 20 x 1.5 x £751 = £22,530.

Illustrative: a barista aged 30 with three complete years' service, on 30 hours a week at £12.71, so £381.30 a week. Basic award: 3 x £381.30 = £1,143.90. In an ordinary case, eight months' service is no complete year, so no basic award.

The compensatory award is what the tribunal considers "just and equitable in all the circumstances having regard to the loss sustained", under section 123: mostly lost pay, reduced where their own conduct contributed. Today section 124 caps it at the lower of £123,543 and 52 weeks' pay: for the illustrative barista, 52 x £381.30 = £19,827.60.

Section 25(3) of the 2025 Act omits section 124 altogether, and regulation 4 of the commencement regulations applies that where the effective date of termination is on or after 1 January 2027. The cap already doesn't apply to whistleblowing or health and safety dismissals.

	Ends before 1 Jan 2027	Ends on or after 1 Jan 2027
Service needed	Two years	Six months
Basic award	Week's pay capped at £751	Week's pay capped at £751
Compensatory award	Lower of £123,543 and 52 weeks' pay	No cap

Under section 207A of the Trade Union and Labour Relations (Consolidation) Act 1992, if you unreasonably fail to follow the Code, a tribunal may, where it's just and equitable, "increase any award it makes to the employee by no more than 25%". An employee who unreasonably fails to follow it can have their award cut by up to 25%. Under section 124A, the adjustment applies to the compensatory award, not the basic award. Illustrative: 25% of a £10,000 compensatory award is £2,500, making £12,500.

Before most claims, the employee has to notify Acas for early conciliation, which "can last up to 12 weeks". For employment ending on or after 1 October 2026, the time limit is six months minus one day from the effective date of termination, paused during early conciliation if Acas is notified in time. Employment ending on 15 January 2027 gives until 14 July 2027, before any pause. Your appeal process doesn't stop that clock.

Protected conversations and settlement agreements

Sometimes both sides would rather agree an exit. Under section 111A, an offer or discussion "with a view to it being terminated on terms agreed" usually can't be used in evidence in an ordinary unfair dismissal claim. That protection doesn't extend to automatically unfair, discrimination or breach of contract claims, and improper behaviour such as threats can lose it. A binding settlement agreement must be in writing, with the employee advised by a relevant independent adviser named in it. Get professional help.

A one-page procedure you can adapt

Acas's checklist for small organisations says rules should "be simple, clear and in writing" and "be known and understood by all employees". Your written statement has to point staff to them within two months of starting. One page will do, covering conduct and performance, with an informal word first for minor issues:

Investigate. We gather the facts. Any suspension is short, on full pay and not a penalty.
Write to them. The allegation, copies of the evidence, the possible outcome, and the meeting's time and place.
Meeting. You can bring a colleague or a trade union representative, and put your side.
Decision in writing. No action, a first written warning (live for six months), a final written warning (live for 12 months) or dismissal.
Appeal. In writing within five working days, heard by someone not involved where possible, or by an external adviser.

Gross misconduct: your café's examples, and that dismissal without notice follows only after this process.

Then keep the paperwork. The Code says employers "would be well advised to keep a written record" of cases, and Acas's guide lists the allegation, the employee's defence, your findings and actions with the reasons, any appeal and its outcome, and notes of formal meetings, copied to the employee. Keep them confidential and "no longer than necessary".

This month

List every employee with their start date and the date they reach six months. Anyone continuously employed since on or before 1 July 2026 is protected from 1 January. For later starters, allow at least a week's margin for the notice rule.
Deal now with what you've been putting off, fairly: the informal word, then the Code if that doesn't work. Not a rush for the door.
Write or update the procedure, from the outline above or Acas's sample for small organisations.
Tell staff where it is, and point to it in every written statement.
Set probation review points for everyone hired from now on, well before six months.
Find your independent person for appeals before you need one.

A fair process is mostly what good managers do anyway: say what's wrong, listen, give people a real chance, and write it down. From 1 January, it's also what decides whether a dismissal stands up.

Ed O'Brien has run Hunters Cake Company for 17 years across cafés in Witney, Burford, and a bakery in Carterton, Oxfordshire. He's building Brikly - modular tools that give independent café owners the same data the big chains have, without the big chain price tag.