The Employment Rights Act 1996 was created by the Parliament ofthe United Kingdom to address employee issues such as unfairdismissal, time off from work and protection of wages. The Act hasbeen a source of controversy because it covers most British peopleand contract workers, but it does not cover low paid, agencyworkers. The Act describes an employee as someone who holds acontract of employment and differentiates between someone who isemployed by an employer and someone who is self employed. In somelegal cases, vulnerable workers were labeled as self employed andwere not allowed protection under the Act. This meant that workerscould be fired for no good reason.Fair DismissalOne of the most important rights highlighted in the Act is theright to a fair dismissal. An unfair dismissal occurs