Reason for dismissal

Case 10: The facts

Darren Keyes had received a number of disciplinary warnings throughout his employment, and was dismissed following what the employment tribunal considered a "trivial" incident. The tribunal concluded that his dismissal was therefore unfair.

The ruling

The Employment Appeal Tribunal (EAT) held that the employer was entitled to take Keyes's record into account and to rely on a "final straw" argument when dismissing him. It found that he was fairly dismissed.

Instrument Transformers Ltd v Keyes EATS/0001/04

Case 11: The facts

Barry Henderson and his colleagues were dismissed for refusing to accept changes to their terms and conditions proposed by their employer as a result of economic difficulties.

In their unfair dismissal claims, which were upheld, the employer said they had been fairly dismissed by reason of redundancy. On appeal, the employer argued that they had been fairly dismissed for SOSR, and the tribunal should have considered this as the reason for dismissal.

The ruling

The EAT held that the employer could not rely on a reason for dismissal that had not been put to the tribunal. There may have been a dismissal for SOSR on economic grounds, but there was no redundancy. However, this had not been argued at the tribunal and no evidence had been produced to support it, so the tribunal was entitled to find that the employer had failed to show a fair reason for dismissal.

Mitie Olscot Ltd v Henderson & Ors EATS/0016/04