If you're a UCATT member and need advice, call 0800 262 467 or email info@ucatt.org.uk quoting your membership number.

Employment Rights

Looking After Your Employment Rights

The nature of the industry we all work in means that disputes are bound to arise. After all, few of us enjoy the security and benefits you would expect if you had a nine to five office job or a career in the bank. That's why UCATT membership is essential for everyone in construction and allied trades: because some employers will abuse your rights, and without UCATT behind you, it can be a much harder job to assert your rights and get the pay, conditions and respect that you deserve. This page tells you about just some of the areas of employment rights UCATT can help its members with.
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Qualifying time limits for individual employment rights

After one month
  • medical suspension rights
  • guarantee pay rights
  • minimum notice rights
Within 8 weeks
  • written statement of particulars
After 26 weeks
  • statutory maternity pay
  • paternity leave
  • adoption leave
  • the right to request flexible working
  • additional maternity leave (by 14th week before the expected week of childbirth)
After 1 year
  • written reasons for dismissal
  • ordinary' unfair dismissal rights
  • additional maternity leave
  • parental leave
After 2 years
  • redundancy payments
  • time off during redundancy notice
After 4 years

To become a permanent employee on the renewal of a fixed term contract (or re-engagement on a new fixed term contract) and to a written statement confirming this – 4 years unless the continuation of the fixed term contract can be objectively justified. Service before 10th July 2002 does not count.

There are very strict time limits for submitting applications to an employment tribunal. The deadline for most applications is 3 months from the incident complained about, except in redundancy cases or in equal pay claims when it is 6 months.

Check the disciplinary and grievance section for more information on time limits.

For more information contact your regional office, quoting your UCATT membership number.