Law soc wants dismissal payout raised

The maximum award for compensation for unfair dismissal should stand at more than u31,000 rather than the current u11,000 ceiling, the Law Society's employment law committee says. The committee, chaired by Simmons & Simmons partner Janet Gaymer, says now the limit has been lifted on sex and race discrimination awards, it is "highly anomalous" that unfair dismissal levels remain unchanged. The committee has criticised the Government decision not to increase award levels for industrial tribunals this year, and Gaymer says: "We think it is time that the Secretary of State acted to remove this anomaly altogether and gave employees real compensation for loss of a job."