Discipline

New and updated

• Type:

  Employment law cases

  Unfair dismissal: Procedural defects cured by internal appeal

  In Khan v Stripestar Ltd EAT/0022/15, the EAT held that an employment tribunal was entitled to find that a dismissal was fair despite a wholly defective and unfair initial disciplinary hearing, because the subsequent internal appeal cured the defects earlier in the process.

• Type:

  Employment law cases

  Unfair dismissal: impact of "manifestly inappropriate" warning on decision to dismiss

  The Employment Appeal Tribunal (EAT) has held that where an employee is dismissed for misconduct following an earlier warning that the tribunal has found to be manifestly inappropriate, the tribunal must examine the weight the employer attached to that warning in deciding whether or not the decision to dismiss was within the range of reasonable responses.

• Type:

  Employment law cases

  Acas code does not extend to dismissal for breakdown in working relationships

  The Employment Appeal Tribunal (EAT) has held that the "Acas code of practice on disciplinary and grievance procedures" does not apply to dismissals for some other substantial reason (SOSR) due to a breakdown in working relationships.

• Type:

  Employment law cases

  Unfair dismissal: Employee's dismissal was fair even though colleague received lesser sanction

  In MBNA Ltd v Jones EAT/0120/15, the EAT held that the employee was fairly dismissed despite the fact that a colleague involved in the same incident received a final written warning.

• Type:

  Employment law cases

  Series of incidents of verbal abuse of colleagues culminates in fair dismissal

  This first-instance tribunal decision shows that a series of incidents in which an employee is warned for verbally abusing colleagues can combine to lead to a fair dismissal, even if taken individually the incidents do not justify dismissal.

• Type:

  Employment law cases

  Discipline: Flaws in disciplinary process were remedied by appeal proceedings

  In Adeshina v St George's University Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust [2015] IRLR 704 EAT, the EAT held that flaws in disciplinary proceedings leading to a dismissal were remedied by the appeal process, and that the dismissal was fair.

• Type:

  Employment law cases

  Right to be accompanied: veto on trade union representative was unlawful

  An employer's veto on a trade union representative accompanying its employees to disciplinary or grievance hearings led to breaches of the right to be accompanied, an employment tribunal has found.

• Type:

  Employment law cases

  EAT sets limit on the role of HR in disciplinary proceedings

  The Employment Appeal Tribunal (EAT) held that a dismissal will be unfair if the decision to dismiss an employee is improperly influenced by the HR department. The EAT explained the role of HR in disciplinary proceedings.

• Type:

  Employment law cases

  Refusal to allow employee to be accompanied by chosen companion at disciplinary investigation was breach of trust and confidence

  The High Court has held that an employer breached its implied duty of trust and confidence towards an employee who was not allowed to be accompanied at a disciplinary investigation by his choice of companion.

• Type:

  Employment law cases

  Dismissal of employee accused of putting image of witch on computer of colleague who "unfriended" her on Facebook

  The Employment Appeal Tribunal (EAT) has held that procedural defects in an employee's dismissal for allegedly bullying a colleague who "unfriended" her on Facebook could be cured during the appeal stage.