Confirmation of outcome of long-term incapacity dismissal appeal meeting

After holding an appeal against the decision to dismiss the employee on long-term incapacity grounds, you need to formally notify them of the outcome. The decision on an appeal will be final.

A final decision

After hearing what the employee has to say as part of their appeal, for example they might provide more medical evidence or give confirmation that they will be fit to return to work in some capacity earlier than envisaged, there are two possible outcomes. The first is that you decide to reject the appeal. This means the decision to dismiss the employee on long-term incapacity grounds remains in force. The second is that you uphold the employee’s appeal, which involves reinstating them into employment as if they’d never been dismissed. In this scenario, your employee will probably have been out of your employment for a couple of weeks without pay. You would normally be expected to pay them for this period. Of course, unless the employee has made a miraculous recovery in the meantime and so is now fit to return to work, they will effectively be reinstated to sick leave until they are fit to return, meaning you only need to pay sick pay, e.g. SSP or contractual sick pay, for the intervening period between dismissal and reinstatement. If the employee does present new medical evidence or says they are now fit to return to work, or will be imminently, investigate this further before deciding the appeal, even if the evidence appears questionable, dubious or contradictory and regardless of the fact it’s been produced at such a late stage. If necessary, obtain a further up-to-date medical report. Use our Confirmation of Outcome of Long-Term Incapacity Dismissal Appeal Meeting to notify the employee in writing of the outcome of their appeal and to clarify that the appeal decision is final.