Effective Date of Termination of Employment

In Radecki v Kirklees Metropolitan Borough Council (KMBC) UKEAT/0114/08/DA, the Employment Appeal Tribunal (EAT) held that an employee's effective date of termination was the date on which his employer provided written confirmation that the employment relationship had ended. This was despite the fact that the employee had been removed from the payroll over four months previously, on a date designated under a draft settlement agreement which was never concluded.

Mr Radecki, who was employed as a teacher by KMBC, was suspended from work over concerns about his skills and experience and his relationship difficulties with other staff members. As part of settlement discussions with KMBC, he negotiated a compromise agreement (in other words, a UK settlement agreement) to compensate him for the termination of his employment from 31 October 2006. On that date Mr Radecki was removed from the payroll and subsequently remained absent from work. The compromise agreement was never concluded.

On 5 March 2007, Mr Radecki received written notice from KMBC confirming that his employment had terminated on 31 October 2006. Mr Radecki subsequently brought an unfair dismissal claim on 7 March 2007 which was dismissed for being out of time on the basis that the agreed termination date had been 31 October 2006.

The EAT found that the termination date of 31 October 2006 had always been subject to the compromise agreement being concluded and it never was. Accordingly, there was no "sufficiently unequivocal statement" which terminated Mr Radecki's employment until KMBC's letter dated 5 March 2007. The EAT held that this was the effective date of termination. Mr Radecki's claim was therefore presented in time and could proceed.