In person For the v Mr T Chaudhry solicitor — 2019

The claimant, who had worked for the respondent since 2002 as a chef, resigned on 28 January 2018 after a series of disputes following Mr Hugo Nisbet's purchase of the business in September 2017. The tribunal accepted the claimant's evidence, including her diary and the agreed transcript of the 19 January disciplinary meeting, as detailed and consistent. It found that Mr Nisbet's conduct included shouting at her, repeatedly criticising her pay, questioning her illness, restricting breaks and phone use, and requiring her to justify routine matters in a way that undermined her position.

The tribunal found that the respondent failed to pay the claimant on time, delayed dealing properly with her pay concerns, recruited a head chef while she was off sick, and then allowed the head chef and Mr Nisbet to issue repeated warnings and complaints about her. It also found that new contract terms were imposed on employees, and that for the claimant those terms were less favourable, including payment dates and lay-off provisions, without proper consultation or agreement. The disciplinary process over the January incidents was also found to be unreasonable, including the threat of dismissal over matters the tribunal regarded as minor and the delay in giving a conclusion.

Applying the constructive dismissal authorities it cited, the tribunal concluded that these matters amounted cumulatively to a breach of the implied term of mutual trust and confidence and that the claimant resigned in response to that breach. It held that she was constructively dismissed, that the respondent had not established a reason for dismissal, and that even if it had, the dismissal fell outside the band of reasonable responses. The tribunal upheld the unfair dismissal claim and found that the claimant did not contribute to her dismissal at all. Remedy, including the ACAS Code issue, was left to a later hearing.