Mrs D Morris v The Partners (as listed in the appendix) t/a Shelley Manor and Holdenhurst Medical Centre — 2022

Mrs Morris was the Practice Business Manager and was summarily dismissed on 24 December 2020. The tribunal found that she had claimed overtime through the COVID support fund at 1.25 times salary, totalling about £15,900 by the end of September 2020 and £16,888.39 for April to September 2020, and that she did so without the partner authorisation required by her contract. Her two money claims were dealt with by consent: the £62.38 claim was withdrawn, and the respondent was ordered by consent to pay £2,050.68 gross subject to lawful deductions.

On whistleblowing, the tribunal did not accept that the August and September discussions about extended hours with Dr Zahedi, Dr Walker-Date and Dr Savage were protected disclosures. It found that the 12 October 2020 meeting with Dr Walker-Date and Dr Yeoman, in which Mrs Morris referred to going to the CQC about extended hours and honesty, could amount to a qualifying disclosure to the employer under section 43B. The later comment to Dr Zahedi about the practice being fudged did not meet the statutory test.

The tribunal held that the protected disclosure was not the reason, or principal reason, for dismissal. It found that the Practice dismissed Mrs Morris for conduct reasons recorded in the dismissal letter, namely claiming overtime hours without partner authorisation and claiming hours that were not all COVID-related. Applying section 98 ERA, it found a genuine belief on reasonable grounds after a reasonable investigation, and held that dismissal was within the band of reasonable responses. The ordinary unfair dismissal claim and the wrongful dismissal claim were therefore dismissed; the tribunal also said that, even if unfair dismissal had been made out, any basic or compensatory award would have been reduced to nil because of Mrs Morris's contribution.