In person with the assistance of Mr T O’Shea (Lay representative) For the v Respondent — 2022

The claimant was dismissed summarily on 8 January 2020 after disciplinary proceedings concerning alleged misuse of Trust resources, including personal internet use during working hours and access to a shared spreadsheet on 16 October 2019. The tribunal accepted that the respondent had previously raised internet usage with the claimant in May 2019 and had issued an informal warning at that meeting. It found that the October 2019 internet reports showed repeated access to non-work-related sites during the working day and that the claimant's suggestion that the reports were fabricated was not proved.

On unfair dismissal, the tribunal applied section 98 ERA 1996 and the Burchell approach. It found that CAW genuinely believed the claimant had committed misconduct, that there were reasonable grounds for that belief, and that the investigation was reasonable in the circumstances. The tribunal also rejected the claimant's complaint that the allegations were not properly defined or that delay made the procedure unfair, finding that the prior warning and the way the allegations were put meant she understood what was alleged and could respond to it. It further held that dismissal was a fair sanction and within the range of reasonable responses.

On wrongful dismissal, the tribunal accepted the respondent's case that clause 3.1 of the claimant's contract and the disciplinary procedure permitted summary dismissal in appropriate circumstances, including gross misconduct. It found that the claimant's conduct amounted to misuse of Trust time and property as defined in the disciplinary policy, so the respondent was entitled to dismiss without notice. Both the unfair dismissal and wrongful dismissal claims were therefore dismissed, and no remedy was awarded.