Mr C Ojji v G4S Secure Solutions (UK) Limited — 2021

The Claimant worked as a security officer at a DWP site. On 5 July 2019 a member of the public subjected him to racist abuse while seated in the waiting area. The Claimant walked over to the customer and struck him in the face, causing his nose to bleed. The Claimant admitted striking the customer and accepted that it was wrong.

The Tribunal found that the Respondent genuinely believed the Claimant had committed misconduct, had reasonable grounds for that belief, and had carried out a reasonable investigation in the circumstances. It accepted that the racist abuse formed part of the circumstances, but held that the case before it was not a race discrimination case.

Applying section 98(4) and the band of reasonable responses test, the Tribunal found that dismissal for gross misconduct was fair given the nature of the security role, the admitted assault, and the absence of physical danger to the Claimant at the time. It also found that any procedural issues were not sufficient to make the dismissal unfair and that matters were corrected on appeal. For wrongful dismissal, the Tribunal found that the admitted assault amounted to gross misconduct under the contract, so summary dismissal without notice was permitted.