Mr Shamsheer Shah v Alpha Response 2004 Ltd t/a Red Support Services — 2023

Mr Shamsheer Shah worked as a Security Officer and was summarily dismissed by Alpha Response 2004 Ltd on 10 May 2022 after allegations that he left the Galaxy Centre site during working hours on several occasions. The respondent relied on CCTV footage, sign-in/out records, the Daily Occurrence Report book and the evidence of managers. The claimant said he had swapped shifts and was leaving with consent, but the tribunal found the respondent was entitled to reject those explanations on the evidence before it.

Applying section 98(1), (2) and (4) ERA 1996 and the Burchell test, the tribunal held that conduct was the principal reason for dismissal and that the respondent had reasonable grounds for its belief. It found the investigation reasonable overall, including Mr Jones' investigatory meeting and Mr Shodalubi's disciplinary decision, even though the respondent could have interviewed other officers before dismissal and could have disclosed some materials earlier. Those matters were not material defects and did not deprive the claimant of a fair hearing.

The tribunal also held that the overall procedure was fair, notwithstanding a technical breach of the respondent's appeal procedure because no face-to-face appeal meeting was held. Miss Rann reviewed the relevant material, including the CCTV, log sheets and notes, and the tribunal found the appeal process did not render the dismissal unfair. It concluded that dismissal fell within the range of reasonable responses because the claimant had been warned previously, understood the seriousness of leaving site during working hours, and the respondent treated the conduct as gross misconduct under its disciplinary rules.

The wrongful dismissal claim also failed. The tribunal held that the claimant's unauthorised departure from site during working hours was a breach of contract that fundamentally undermined the employment relationship, so summary dismissal was justified and no notice pay was due.