Simply saying Youre fired! is landing bosses in trouble

The phrase Youre fired has become extremely popular after being used by Donald Trump and Brit Sir Alan Sugar in their reality TV series The Apprentice. However, experts warn bosses are increasingly being taken to an employment tribunal for using the same tactic.

London, Aug 22 : The phrase 'You're fired' has become extremely popular after being used by Donald Trump and Brit Sir Alan Sugar in their reality TV series 'The Apprentice'. However, experts warn bosses are increasingly being taken to an employment tribunal for using the same tactic.

And, it is also proving to be a costly phrase, for thousands of employers have landed in expensive legal action for using it while terminating an employee's job.

The finding came from a Scottish law firm that found that dismissed workers were increasingly taking their bosses to court, and were claiming dismissal for not following the correct procedure.

Figures from the Employment Tribunals Service (ETS) show in 2004-5, there were 86,181 registered employment tribunal claims, while last year, there were more than 115,000.

The figures for 2007 are expected to be around 132,000 cases, reports The Scotsman.

"Since The Apprentice came on TV, we've seen a massive rise in dismissals in which employers or bosses apparently emulate or copy Sir Alan Sugar's methods. There is no doubt about it. It has resulted in a series of unfair dismissal applications to employment tribunals," said employment law specialist John Muir, of Muir Myles Laverty which is based in Dundee.

Mandy Telford, dignity at work officer for Unite, the UK's largest union added: "The sort of bullying seen on The Apprentice can be devastating for people. Bosses should not watch this programme and think that this sort of behaviour is in any way appropriate."

ANI