What Poor Performance Dismissal Means
You were told your work was not good enough and now your job is at risk.
Poor performance dismissal is one of the harder categories to challenge, because it touches on ability rather than a single clear incident, yet fairness still applies to how it is handled.
What It Means
It means ending your job because your employer believes your work has not met a reasonable standard, rather than because of misconduct or a business need like redundancy.
This kind of dismissal usually requires more than an employer’s general dissatisfaction. It expects specific, documented concerns raised with you over time.
Why It Matters To You
A dismissal for poor performance is harder to defend on your employer’s side if it came without warning, without specific examples, or without a genuine chance for you to improve first.
That gap between what should happen and what actually happened is often where a challengeable case begins.
What Should Have Happened First
Look for a documented pattern: written feedback, a formal warning, or a performance improvement plan giving you a real opportunity to address the concerns raised.
If none of that happened, or the plan itself looks designed to fail rather than help, that process gap matters as much as the underlying complaint about your work.
Whatever the reason given, check your 60-day filing window on the deadline calculator so you do not lose the chance to challenge it.
Telling us what feedback or warnings you actually received beforehand helps us see whether the process leading to your dismissal was fair.
Common questions
Can I be dismissed for poor performance without any warning?
A sudden dismissal with no prior warning or documented concerns is harder for an employer to defend, since fairness usually expects some notice that your performance is considered a problem.
Does one bad review count as poor performance?
A single review rarely stands alone as sufficient reason. Employers are generally expected to show an ongoing, documented pattern and a real opportunity to improve before deciding to dismiss.
Keep reading
Telling us what feedback or warnings you actually received beforehand helps us see whether the process leading to your dismissal was fair.