General protections: what it actually covers, and what this site has not sourced
A general protections claim says the dismissal was for a reason the law prohibits, not that the process was unfair. This site has not sourced the full list of protected reasons.
A general protections dismissal claim asks a different question from an unfair dismissal claim. The Fair Work Commission's own framing: "you are saying that you were fired for a reason that is against the law." That could include, in general terms, exercising a workplace right, being a member of a union, or being dismissed because of a protected attribute, but this site has not opened the Fair Work Act's own text setting out the full, precise list of protected reasons and workplace rights, so nothing here enumerates them exhaustively.
Same deadline, different eligibility gate
General protections claims about dismissal run on the same 21-day deadline as unfair dismissal claims, but they do not appear to run on the same minimum-employment-period or high-income-threshold eligibility gate; the Fair Work Commission's guidance frames eligibility here around the reason for the dismissal rather than length of service or income. This site has not sourced a complete, separate eligibility checklist for general protections claims and does not present one.
Where an unresolved dispute goes
If conciliation does not resolve a general protections dismissal dispute, the Commission issues a certificate allowing the matter to go to court, and states plainly if it thinks the applicant is unlikely to succeed there. From that point you generally have 14 days to apply to the Federal Court or the Federal Circuit and Family Court, or, only with both parties' agreement, jointly ask the Commission to arbitrate, which the Commission's own guidance describes as rare.