Unfairly Dismissed?
Local businesses need to be very careful when they sack staff. Even where it looks as if there is a good case if proper procedures are not followed then a claim for unfair dismissal can be brought later. These claims can be as high as £60,000 or even more where there is discrimination involved.
Paul Seath, an Associate in our Employment Department, says: “Even where the member of staff has a poor attendance record or is incompetent it is wise to take legal advice from an employment lawyer before dismissing an employee. Many employment tribunal cases arise because of a failure to follow correct procedure. Often verbal and written warnings must be given. Individuals have a right to bring someone along to a disciplinary appointment at work and it can be important to consider what is contained in their employment contract as well.
For example the contract may say that breaching the company’s email policy at work is “gross misconduct” which could make it easier to dismiss the employee if there is such a breach. If there is no such policy and other employees have been allowed without objection to use email for personal purposes at work you may have litigation on your hands. Sacking an employee for bringing the employer into disrepute or for activities outside work is always a difficult case. Employees sacked because they were discovered to be football hooligans was the subject of one case and few will have missed the recent tribulations in the world of football. Dismissal for allegedly having an affair with a secretary at work is unlikely to be fair and lawful.
There are often changes in employment law so it is sensible to take regular advice in this field. On 15th July the House of Lords, the highest court, held that that in unfair dismissal cases employment tribunals do not have power to award financial compensation for non-financial "loss" (such as for injury to feelings resulting from stress). This only applies in unfair dismissal cases. There is specific provision by Act of Parliament for tribunals to be able to award compensation for injury to feelings in discrimination cases. Another change in October is that there will be compulsory disciplinary and grievance procedures applicable to all employers. If they are not followed, any dismissal can be automatically unfair and subsequent compensation can be increased by between 10-50%. There may also be penalties for not giving employees written particulars of their employment or an employment contract and an obligation on employers of all sizes to tell staff about disciplinary procedures. Now would be a good time to get proper contracts with your employees drawn up.”
For further information contact Paul Seath on (0117) 929 0451 or e-mail pseath@metcalfes.co.uk
This press release summarises the law on issues which we believe may be of interest to your business. It is not a comprehensive review of the subjects and accordingly is published without responsibility for loss occasioned to any person(s) acting or refraining from action as a result of information published