Dismissal: Imposition of new terms amounted to express dismissal

The unilateral imposition of a continuous rolling shift pattern in place of the traditional shifts previously worked by employees in accordance with their contracts amounted to an express dismissal of those employees, who reserved their right to complain of unfair dismissal even though they worked under the new system, holds the EAT in Alcan Extrusions v Yates and others [1996] IRLR 327. Wrongful imposition of contractual changes may amount to an express dismissal - rather than a repudiatory breach entitling the employee either to treat the contract as terminated and claim constructive dismissal or to waive the breach by continuing to work under the new terms - if the departure from the original contract is so substantial as to amount to the withdrawal of the whole contract.