Hi there. An unfair dismissal generally occurs where an employee is dismissed in a harsh, unjust or unreasonable way. From the information you provided, you may be able to claim that you were unreasonably dismissed by your former employer because they failed to give you a valid reason for letting you go or because you were not given an opportunity to respond to any issues with your capacity, conduct or performance. Your dismissal may also have been unfair because it does not appear to have been part of a restructure of the business.

However, you should be aware that your unfair dismissal claim may face some hurdles. Generally a person cannot make an unfair dismissal claim if he or she resigned and were not forced to do so by the conduct of their employer. Although you said you were asked to finish work “in a couple of weeks”, the law may deem your resignation to be voluntary. You should also note that unfair dismissal claims must be lodged with the Fair Work Commission (www.fwc.gov.au) within 21 days of the dismissal taking effect.

If you are not eligible for an unfair dismissal claim, you may have other legal options. If you signed an employment contract, you may have a claim for “wrongful dismissal” if your employer dismissed you without having the power to do so under the terms of the employment contract. Wrongful dismissal is different to unfair dismissal.

If you are eligible to make one of the above claims, you may be entitled to compensation or reinstatement of your employment (if appropriate).