Termination of employment (frustration of contract) and benifit claim

[simplesimonpie]

can anybody please advise me i have just had my contract terminated due to fustration of contract, i have been off work with stress and depression, whilst i am fully aware the employer has the right to termainate at any time because it was a 6 month probationary period, i still have 3 weeks to run on my current sick note.

Where will i stand for benifits as i am still unfit for work and as the termination isnt due to gross missconduct or volunarily leaveing the position but to fustration of contract will i still face the possibility of sanction?

I got this of CAB
What does not count as dismissal – frustration of contract

Frustration of contract happens when an employee cannot fulfil their contractual obligations because of an unforeseen change of circumstances. If a contract has been frustrated, this means that it no longer exists and neither the employer nor the employee has any obligations under it. There is therefore no dismissal.
The two most common ways in which a contract may be frustrated are long-term sickness or injury of the employee, and imprisonment of the employee.
It is common for employers to claim that the employment contract has been frustrated when they are actually dismissing an employee unfairly. If your employer is trying to claim the contract has been frustrated.

[Eloise01]

Re: Termination of employment (frustration of contract) and benifit claim

The contractual issue is moot - I sincerely doubt that if you have less than six months employment that you could physically have been off work sufficiently long for frustration of contract unless you have been off the whole six months! But that doesn't matter because you needed two years for any claim of unfair dismissal, so it isn't worth investigating the matter further because there is nothing that you can do about it. Or probably not - there is an outside chance that there may be the potential for discrimination, but I'd need full information and details to consider that aspect.

The fact that your sick note continues to run past your notice period doesn't matter in relation to your employer terminating the contract. If you remain unfit for work you would have to claim benefits - I believe you need another sick note from the GP to claim ESA for now, but benefits aren't my strong point now as they have changed a lot since I retired. Someone else may be able to help with that better.

Because the contract was terminated due to sickness there should be no sanction.

[simplesimonpie]

Re: Termination of employment (frustration of contract) and benifit claim

The contractual issue is moot - I sincerely doubt that if you have less than six months employment that you could physically have been off work sufficiently long for frustration of contract unless you have been off the whole six months! But that doesn't matter because you needed two years for any claim of unfair dismissal, so it isn't worth investigating the matter further because there is nothing that you can do about it. Or probably not - there is an outside chance that there may be the potential for discrimination, but I'd need full information and details to consider that aspect.

The fact that your sick note continues to run past your notice period doesn't matter in relation to your employer terminating the contract. If you remain unfit for work you would have to claim benefits - I believe you need another sick note from the GP to claim ESA for now, but benefits aren't my strong point now as they have changed a lot since I retired. Someone else may be able to help with that better.

Because the contract was terminated due to sickness there should be no sanction.

Thanks Eloise i have no intention of looking any further into the issue or complaining about the decision as i fully accept the employer was well within there rights, it was just the issue of haveing to put a claim in for benifits thats all.

It doesnt mention in the letter i have recived it was because i was sick they said because i failed to turn up for two of the invitation wellbeing meetings that they feel the contract is frustrated.

But lets be honest after 2 months nearly off work at the end of the probation period they wouldnt have gave me a permenant job anyway.