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Your employment rights

Your employment rights are protected by law to stop you from being exploited or treated badly. You have some rights as soon as you start work and others that depend on how long you have been working.

Getting advice about your employment rights

If you need advice there are various organisations which offer free advice and some where you can get legal advice that you may need to pay for.

Below are some of the organisations that can offer free advice.

Pay and Work Rights Helpline

The Pay and Work Rights Helpline can help you with questions or complaints on:

• National Minimum Wage rights
• working for an employment agency
• the right not to have to work more than 48 hours a week against your will
• Agricultural Minimum Wage rights
• working for a gangmaster (an agent who finds you work in agriculture, forestry, food processing, food packaging, shellfish processing)
  

You can call the helpline on 0800 917 2368 for advice or use the online enquiry or complaint form if you:

• need to know more about your rights in these areas
• think your employer is not respecting those rights

• Pay and Work Rights general enquiry form Opens new window

• Pay and Work Rights complaint form Opens new window

• Pay and Work Rights Helpline contact details

If you have a question about a different area of employment that’s not listed here, it’s likely that the Pay and Work Rights Helpline won’t be able to answer it.

• Basic employment rights

• Basic employment rights guidance in foreign languages

Acas (Advisory, Conciliation and Arbitration Service)

Acas offers free, confidential and impartial advice on employment rights such as holiday rights, sick pay and unfair dismissal.

It can also help employees and employers who are involved in an employment dispute to identify practical ways of sorting out the problem.

• Acas contact details

Equality and Human Rights Commission

For advice or information about discrimination, equality and human rights you can contact the Equality and Human Rights Commission.

• Equality and Human Rights Commission

Other organisations

There are other organisations that may be able to provide free help with a whole range of issues including employment:

• Citizens Advice - help with legal, money and other problems
• Community Legal Advice - help over the phone with benefits and tax credits, debt, education, housing, employment and family problems
  

For contact details follow the links below.

• Find your local Citizens Advice Bureau

• Community Legal Advice

You may need to pay for some legal advice. Find out more about:

• getting legal advice and legal aid
• searching for approved solicitors, other advice agencies and information providers (England and Wales)
• finding a solicitor in Scotland
  

• Getting legal advice and legal aid (government, citizens and rights section)