Labour Research (December 2001)

Features: Law queries

Law queries

* One of my members was made redundant, offered a new post with the same firm and then dismissed within a few days of taking up the new job. The employer says the dismissal is due to a redundancy. We believe that it is all about the individual employee and his conduct since the first redundancies were declared. We think therefore that this could be an unfair dismissal case where obviously he could get more compensation.

An employer can only dismiss for redundancy (a potentially fair dismissal) where the dismissal is because the work is expected to cease or diminish. If this is not the case a tribunal is entitled to find that this is not the ground of the dismissal. In the absence of the employer presenting evidence to show that there was an alternative reason amounting to a fair dismissal the tribunal has to act on the basis that the dismissal is unfair.

More information: Amor v Galliard Homes 47/01


This information is copyright to the Labour Research Department (LRD) and may not be reproduced without the permission of the LRD.