An employee who needed to answer “a call of nature”, stopped his van to do just that. His employer reacted by sacking him for gross misconduct. But what did the tribunal think? Was this a “reasonable
response” or not?
Published 20.11.2009
When disciplining employees you know that you must act reasonably. So you might be inclined to give them the “benefit of the doubt”, particularly for a first offence. But could a decision like this
ever come back to bite you?
Published 24.03.2010
A subscriber has been tipped-off that an employee “may be involved in shoplifting”. So they want to know whether or not this is grounds for disciplinary action, or even dismissal. How should they
deal with this tricky problem?
Published 27.01.2011
If an employee is summarily dismissed for gross misconduct, they are not entitled to receive the notice period stated in their contract. Could this allow them to claim wrongful dismissal, i.e. breach
of contract, by default?
Published 01.06.2012
Where an employee has committed misconduct, you’ll probably issue them with a written warning or a final written warning as a disciplinary sanction. How long should the written warning remain valid
for, and can you ever extend it?
Published 23.06.2021
A complaint has been received from a member of the public - apparently, whilst she was out jogging, a man driving one of your vehicles sounded the horn at her which she found highly offensive. Should
you treat this as misconduct?
Published 12.02.2015
The penalty for proven gross misconduct is summary dismissal, which means employment can be terminated without notice or pay. But what’s the risk if an employee says they didn’t know their actions
would be treated that seriously?
Published 01.06.2010
You’re reviewing your disciplinary procedures and looking to re-define the type of behaviour which qualifies as gross misconduct. What areas should you consider and how do you make staff aware of
these changes?
Published 04.10.2007
An employee is telling anyone who will listen how he intends to vote in the EU Referendum. He’s fully entitled to his political opinion but you don’t want any controversial debates in your workplace.
What’s the answer?
Published 10.03.2016
Let’s suppose that an employee has been accused of misconduct. They are already subject to a live final written warning but it’s for something entirely different. Does that mean it cannot be taken
into account?
Published 16.11.2016