‘AB’ v The Commissioners for Her Majesty’s Revenue and Customs — 2020

The claimant was dismissed while suspended on full pay pending criminal proceedings. The respondent relied on some other substantial reason, principally the cost to the public purse of continuing paid suspension, with reputational risk also considered. The Tribunal found that the cost of continuing full-pay suspension in these circumstances was capable of being a substantial reason for dismissal.

The Tribunal held, however, that the respondent acted outside the range of reasonable responses. It found that the respondent did not properly assess the risk of the criminal charge becoming public, gave no proper consideration to alternative working arrangements, and treated suspension as routine rather than as an evaluative decision. The Tribunal also found that the respondent's conclusion that it could not return the claimant to meaningful work was not based on reasonable grounds.

For remedy purposes, the Tribunal found that the claimant would have remained employed until 30 November 2019, after his conviction on 30 August 2019, and would then have been fairly dismissed. The compensatory award was limited accordingly, with a 50% reduction for the period from 14 September 2019 to 30 November 2019 to reflect the chance of nil pay, and a further 50% reduction for contributory conduct. The basic award was reduced by 66%. No final award figure was given in this judgment.