When not to claim over poor performance

Was your improvement plan a real chance or a formality?

Look honestly at how your performance improvement plan (PIP) ran. Did your employer set clear, achievable targets, check in with you regularly, and give you fair time before deciding?

If so, a challenge starts from a weaker position.

A PIP that existed mostly on paper, with vague goals and little support, is different. The employer still has to prove the process was fair, so a thin PIP file works against it, not you.

How were others in your role treated?

Think about whether colleagues doing similar work with similar results were treated the same way. If someone missed the same targets and kept their job, or got longer to improve, raise that difference.

Back wages are capped, and the ceiling depends on whether you were confirmed or on probation, so any claim has a limit on the money from the start.² Weigh that limit against how strong your comparison is.

If your real complaint is unpaid salary, unused leave or a benefit you are owed, take it to the Labour Department. It falls under the Employment Act, not Section 20, and filing in the wrong place wastes time you may not have.

What can a better path look like?

Where the PIP looks genuine and your results were consistently short of a fair target, a formal dispute may not be worth it. A direct request for a fair reference letter or a small settlement can get you more, faster.

Check your dismissal date on the 60-day deadline calculator before you rule anything out.¹ The page on dismissal for poor performance sets out what a genuine PIP process includes, so you can judge whether yours measured up.

What should you read next?

If your case still looks worth pursuing, the Section 20 representation page explains the filing step. For the same question in a conduct case, read when a misconduct dismissal is not worth challenging.

If you want a lawyer’s view, an independent employment lawyer can review your case and act if it is worth pursuing.