Employment Rights Act 1996, section 11

References to employment tribunals

Part I Employment particulars

[F80 (1)Where an employer does not give a worker a statement as required by section 1, 4 or 8 (either because the employer gives the worker no statement or because the statement the employer gives does not comply with what is required), the worker may require a reference to be made to an employment tribunal to determine what particulars ought to have been included or referred to in a statement so as to comply with the requirements of the section concerned.F80]

(2)Where—

[F81 (a)a statement purporting to be a statement under section 1 or 4, or a pay statement or a standing statement of fixed deductions purporting to comply with section 8 or 9, has been given to a worker, andF81]

(b)a question arises as to the particulars which ought to have been included or referred to in the statement so as to comply with the requirements of this Part,

either the employer or [F82the workerF82] may require the question to be referred to and determined by an [F79employment tribunalF79] .

(3)For the purposes of this section—

F83 (a). . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

(b)a question as to the particulars which ought to have been included in a pay statement or standing statement of fixed deductions does not include a question solely as to the accuracy of an amount stated in any such particulars.

(4)An [F79employment tribunalF79] shall not consider a reference under this section in a case where the employment to which the reference relates has ceased unless an application requiring the reference to be made was made—

(a)before the end of the period of [F84sixF84] months beginning with the date on which the employment ceased, or

(b)within such further period as the tribunal considers reasonable in a case where it is satisfied that it was not reasonably practicable for the application to be made before the end of that period of [F85sixF85] months.

F86 (5). . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

[F87 (6)[F88 SectionF88] 207B (extension of time limits to facilitate conciliation before institution of proceedings) also applies for the purposes of subsection (4)(a).F87]

Definitions used in section 11 3

employer

(4) In this Act “employer”, in relation to an employee or a worker, means the person by whom the employee or worker is (or, where the employment has ceased, was) employed.

Defined in s.230(4) · see it in the full Act

(6) This section has effect subject to sections 43K , 47B(3) and 49B(10) ; and for the purposes of Part XIII so far as relating to Part IVA or section 47B, “worker”, “worker’s contract” and, in relation to a worker, “employer”, “employment” and “employed” have the extended meaning given by section 43K.

Defined in s.230(6) · see it in the full Act
worker

(3) In this Act “worker” (except in the phrases “shop worker” and “betting worker”) means an individual who has entered into or works under (or, where the employment has ceased, worked under)—

(a)a contract of employment, or

(b)any other contract, whether express or implied and (if it is express) whether oral or in writing, whereby the individual undertakes to do or perform personally any work or services for another party to the contract whose status is not by virtue of the contract that of a client or customer of any profession or business undertaking carried on by the individual;

Defined in s.230(3) · see it in the full Act

(6) This section has effect subject to sections 43K , 47B(3) and 49B(10) ; and for the purposes of Part XIII so far as relating to Part IVA or section 47B, “worker”, “worker’s contract” and, in relation to a worker, “employer”, “employment” and “employed” have the extended meaning given by section 43K.

Defined in s.230(6) · see it in the full Act
employment

(5) In this Act “employment”—

(a)in relation to an employee, means (except for the purposes of section 171) employment under a contract of employment, and

(b)in relation to a worker, means employment under his contract;

Defined in s.230(5) · see it in the full Act

(6) This section has effect subject to sections 43K , 47B(3) and 49B(10) ; and for the purposes of Part XIII so far as relating to Part IVA or section 47B, “worker”, “worker’s contract” and, in relation to a worker, “employer”, “employment” and “employed” have the extended meaning given by section 43K.

Defined in s.230(6) · see it in the full Act

Cases considering section 11 20

Southern Cross Healthcare Co Ltd v Perkins & Ors

[2010] EWCA Civ 1442 · 16 December 2010Limits

The statutory reference procedure does not authorise judicial creativity or contractual construction. It enables the tribunal to determine the particulars necessary for a compliant statutory statement, not the parties’ disputed contractual rights (see [29]-[34]). The court declined to determine for the first time an alleged failure to provide a changed statement. That proposed section 11(1) claim had not been raised below, and the Court of Appeal could not act as a tribunal of first instance (see [35]-[36]). A tribunal may identify the actual contractual terms when deciding whether a statutory statement reflects them. It may not construe disputed wording in the statement to resolve competing contractual claims (see [31]; [33]-[34]).

Walker v Co-Operative Insurance Society

[2003] EWCA Civ 632 · 11 April 2003

Confirms that no determination or amendment of the statement of particulars was required because the contractual documents adequately enabled holiday pay to be calculated. (see paras [16]; [47])

Francis v London Underground Ltd

[2001] EWCA Civ 1662 · 30 October 2001

Applies the three-month time limit for presenting the employment claims and treats that limit as an important restriction going to the jurisdiction of the Employment Tribunal. An extension therefore required consideration of whether presentation within the period was reasonably practicable. Applies the reasonable-practicability test for extending the time limit. The claimant’s previous knowledge of tribunal procedure and earlier use of extensions, together with the length of the requested delay, meant that an extension was not justified.

3 more judgments, and what each says about section 11, are in the case-law panel in the full Act.

Amendments and notes

11 notes from legislation.gov.uk

Amendments

  1. F79Words in s. 11(1)(2)(4) and sidenote to s. 11 substituted (1.8.1998) by 1998 c. 8, s. 1(2)(a)(b) (with s. 16(2)); S.I. 1998/1658, art. 2(1), Sch. 1
  2. F80S. 11(1) substituted (6.4.2020) by The Employment Rights (Miscellaneous Amendments) Regulations 2019 (S.I. 2019/731), regs. 1(2), 13(a) (with reg. 15)
  3. F81S. 11(2)(a) substituted (6.4.2020) by The Employment Rights (Miscellaneous Amendments) Regulations 2019 (S.I. 2019/731), regs. 1(2), 13(b) (with reg. 15)
  4. F82Words in s. 11(2) substituted (6.4.2020) by The Employment Rights (Miscellaneous Amendments) Regulations 2019 (S.I. 2019/731), regs. 1(2), 13(c) (with reg. 15)
  5. F83S. 11(3)(a) omitted (6.4.2016 unless brought into force earlier by an order under s. 56(1) of the amending Act) by virtue of Pensions Act 2014 (c. 19), s. 56(4), Sch. 13 para. 68
  6. F84Word in s. 11(4)(a) substituted (1.10.2026) by Employment Rights Act 2025 (c. 36), s. 159(3), Sch. 12 para. 4(2)(a); S.I. 2026/954, reg. 3 (with reg. 4)
  7. F85Word in s. 11(4)(b) substituted (1.10.2026) by Employment Rights Act 2025 (c. 36), s. 159(3), Sch. 12 para. 4(2)(b); S.I. 2026/954, reg. 3 (with reg. 4)
  8. F86S. 11(5) omitted (31.12.2020) by virtue of The Cross-Border Mediation (EU Directive) (EU Exit) Regulations 2019 (S.I. 2019/469), reg. 1(1), Sch. 1 para. 12(2) (with reg. 5) (as amended by S.I. 2020/1493, regs. 1(1), 4(5)(6)); 2020 c. 1, Sch. 5 para. 1(1)
  9. F87S. 11(6) inserted (6.4.2014) by Enterprise and Regulatory Reform Act 2013 (c. 24), s. 103(3), Sch. 2 para. 16; S.I. 2014/253, art. 3(g)
  10. F88Word in s. 11(6) substituted (6.4.2014) by The Employment Tribunals Act 1996 (Application of Conciliation Provisions) Order 2014 (S.I. 2014/431), art. 1, Sch. para. 3

Modifications

  1. C17S. 11: power to apply conferred (1.4.1999) by 1998 c. 39, s. 12(4)(a) (with s. 36); S.I. 1998/2574, art. 2(2), Sch. 2