Quick! Can someone tell me if you have employment rights before one year of continuous employment in a job?

[HerBeatitudeLittleBella]

A friend of mine is just about to give up her job because a couple of people there (including her supervisor) are making her life unbearable. Normally, I'd tell her to go and see a solicitor because it's quite clearly constructive dismissal. However, she's only been working there for five months, so I think she probably doesn't have any employment rights.

Anyone know? I know that racial and sex discrimination start at interview stage, but any other employment rights I'm hazy on.

TIA!

You can only argue constructive dismissal after a years' service, unfortunately. If your friend decides to hang on, and is sacked anyway, with under 12 months' service, she can claim constructive dismissal, but only if she was sacked for an "automatically unfair" reason. Links follow:
www.ietconnect.org/docs/unfairandconstructivedismissal.pdf and
www.direct.gov.uk/en/Employment/RedundancyAndLeavingYourJob/DG_10026696
Hope she gets on OK.

No she has no right to claim unfair (including constructive) dismissal, before a year, unless there is some kind of discrimination involved or for very limited other reasons.

Has she raised a grievance or taken any other action to try to solve the problems she's having?

She complained to her manager and has notified the police (her car was vandalised, probably by colleagues). She's decided to resign because the stress of it all is making her ill and she's only been there for 8 months - she just can't bear the thought of hanging on for another 4.

Thanks both, I kind of thought it might be this way.