Mr Kevin Mitchell v Lidl Great Britain Limited — 2022

The claimant was summarily dismissed after four bottles of vodka were found in his workplace locker. The tribunal accepted that the respondent genuinely believed the claimant was guilty of misconduct, namely wilful concealment of the bottles with intent to steal, and found that belief was based on reasonable grounds.

The tribunal considered criticisms of the investigation, including CCTV evidence, the failure to interview Mr Bevan, and evidence from anonymous or later-identified witnesses. It found that some steps may have been preferable, but the investigation as a whole was reasonable and the decision-maker did not rely on the challenged evidence in a way that made the dismissal unfair.

The tribunal found the respondent acted procedurally fairly, followed its disciplinary process, and that dismissal fell within the band of reasonable responses, despite the claimant's long unblemished service. For wrongful dismissal, it found on the balance of probabilities that the claimant had wilfully concealed the vodka with intent to steal, amounting to gross misconduct, so the respondent was entitled to dismiss without notice.