Unfair dismissal

New and updated

• Type:

  Employment law cases

  Investigation into gross misconduct: Court of Appeal decides what is reasonable

  The Court of Appeal has held that it was reasonable for the employer not to carry out a detailed investigation into an employee's explanations for unusually high travel expense claims as the employer had obtained sufficient evidence to decide that the employee's explanations were implausible.

• Type:

  Employment law cases

  Dismissed care worker's employment automatically revived when internal appeal upheld

  The Employment Appeal Tribunal (EAT) has held that where an internal appeal is successful, the contract of employment is automatically revived with retrospective effect.

• Type:

  Employment law cases

  Constructive dismissal: employee on sickness absence affirmed contract

  The Employment Appeal Tribunal (EAT) has held that an employee on long-term sickness absence and in receipt of sick pay had affirmed her contract following alleged breaches by her employer. No special considerations apply where an employee alleges that the employer's breach amounts to a demotion.

• Type:

  Employment law cases

  Smoking at work: school catering assistant's use of e-cigarette justifies suspension

  A school catering assistant was suspended by her employer for using an e-cigarette on school premises. She resigned and claimed that she had been constructively dismissed. The employment tribunal did not uphold her claim, but indicated that if she had not resigned but been dismissed, the tribunal might have judged that dismissal to be unfair.

• Type:

  Employment law cases

  Social media: First Twitter case acts as warning for employers

  The Employment Appeal Tribunal considered the misuse of Twitter by an employee for the first time. The decision highlights the importance of having a robust policy in place relating to the use of social media at work.

• Type:

  Employment law cases

  Case round-up

  Helen Almond is professional support lawyer, Nigel Cousin and Victoria Davies managing associates and Iain Naylor and Andrew Nealey associates Addleshaw Goddard LLP. They round up the latest rulings.

• Type:

  Employment law cases

  Whistleblowing: police officer dismissed for taking matters into his own hands

  In DLA Piper's latest case report, the Employment Appeal Tribunal held that a police officer who made protected disclosures was dismissed after taking matters into his own hands and becoming difficult to manage because he was not satisfied with the action taken following the concerns that he had raised, and that he was not dismissed for blowing the whistle.

• Type:

  Employment law cases

  Constructive dismissal: delay in resigning does not alone affirm contract

  The Employment Appeal Tribunal (EAT) has held that when determining whether or not an employee has accepted an employer's fundamental breach of his or her contract of employment and therefore lost his or her right to resign and claim constructive dismissal, the passage of time between the breach and the employee's subsequent resignation is only one factor that must be considered.

• Type:

  Employment law cases

  Case round-up

  Krishna Santra, Linda Quinn and Colin Makin are senior associates and Melissa Powys-Rodrigues and Dominic Speedie are associates at Colman Coyle Solicitors. They round up the latest rulings.

• Type:

  Employment law cases

  Constructive dismissal: notice in excess of contractual amount affirms the contract of employment

  The Employment Appeal Tribunal has held that, where an employee gives notice to terminate his or her contract of employment in excess of the contractual amount, the employee will be deemed to be offering additional performance of his or her contract, which will affirm the contract and undermine a claim for constructive dismissal.