Protected conversations at work

What is a protected conversation?

A protected conversation is a legal concept used in the UK that allows your employer to have an ‘off the record’ chat with you and discuss issues that they may have with your performance or other aspects of your work. 

Under a protected conversation, you can’t refer to what was said in the conversation if you later take your claim to an employment tribunal.

There are strict rules governing what your employer may talk to you about in such an exchange. They can, for example, make you an offer to leave the business, but they can’t actually fire you or threaten you during the discussion – as explained more fully below.

How to have a protected conversation?

Under the rules governing the conduct of a protected conversation, an employer does not have to convene any kind of special meeting and there need not be an existing dispute between you.

They can just take you aside, ask you for a protected conversation and tell you, for example, that your work is sub-standard, that they want you to leave, and that they’ll offer you a settlement payment in return.

So long as there are no allegations of whistleblowing, breach of contract, or discrimination, then a protected conversation, or a transcript of one, is off the record.

How should your employer behave?

Your employer must act ‘properly’ when conducting a protected conversation.  

If they act improperly, for example by threatening you that unless you take what is being offered, then you will be dismissed or by applying excessive pressure to ensure you accept their terms, then the conversation is no longer protected.

In that case, it can be referred to by a judge and used as a reason for you to resign or to sue for unfair dismissal.

What can’t your employer say in a protected conversation?

There are however a couple of important limitations placed on your employer when having a protected conversation that you can use to your advantage, namely:

1.Your employer cannot dismiss you or tell you that you will be dismissed under the guise of a protected conversation.  

They can say that if you do not accept the settlement amount on offer then they will start a disciplinary action or performance management process, but they cannot tell you that this process will lead to you being dismissed.

2. Your employer cannot discriminate against you in such a discussion.  If you think you have been selected for the protected conversation due to your gender, race, age etc or because you have raised concerns about discrimination, then the conversation will not be protected.

It is not uncommon for employers to attempt to have protected conversations with a woman returning from maternity leave, but this will almost always give rise to a claim of maternity discrimination.

Can employees ask for protected conversations?

Yes, employees can ask for protected conversations too, but you’re better off making sure your employer knows you have an issue first, otherwise there is no reason for them to agree to pay you any ex gratia settlement amount.  

As such, it would be best for you to have a ‘without prejudice’ conversation at the appropriate time, rather than seeking to have a protected conversation before you’ve raised a dispute.

What to do if asked to have a protected conversation?

If you’re invited to have a protected conversation with your employer,  agree to have one. There is no harm in hearing what your employer has to say and it may be of benefit to you – especially if you’re already unhappy in your job.  

When you’re having the protected conversation:

• Just listen to what your employer has to say but don’t respond to any settlement offer made or to any criticisms of your performance or conduct.  Say you’ll consider what your employer has said and come back to them.
• You should, however, clarify any points about the offer that you are not sure about e.g. are you going to be required to work your notice period,  what tax treatment is the employer going to apply to the payments?  
• You should also clarify what will happen if you don’t accept a settlement offer. With any luck your employer will say that you will be dismissed, ensuring that the conversation is no longer protected and allowing you to negotiate a better deal.

• Ensure you take good notes of what your employer says in case there is any later dispute. After the conversation, you should consider carefully the offer that has been made and ways you may be able to improve it.   Your employer’s first offer is often not their best.

By the time you start negotiating for a settlement agreement, your exchanges with your employer will usually follow the without prejudice rules explained in our article on how to use without prejudice.

Next steps

If your employer has asked you to have a protected conversation and threatened you with the sack, or in other ways behaved ‘improperly’ during the exchange (see above), then they may be trying to get rid of you unfairly.

If you are being subjected to protected conversations that you don’t fully understand or are being treated badly at work, then contact Monaco Solicitors who may be able to help you with your case.

We are specialist employment law solicitors who only represent employees – not employers. We offer a range of services designed to meet the needs of a variety of employees.

If you’d like to find out more, do get in touch:

• Via this website link
• By phone on  020 7717 5259
• By email: communications@monacosolicitors.co.uk