Ms Angelica Rokad, Counsel For the v Respondent — 2020

The claimant, Miss Partridge, was employed by the University of Northampton as a Senior Lecturer and Programme Leader. The tribunal accepted that the respondent had genuine and reasonably held concerns about her performance and conduct, including repeated failures to respond to emails, missed meetings, difficulties with students and colleagues, and a deterioration in her working relationship with Ms Coles. It also accepted that the claimant was subject to disciplinary proceedings after an earlier informal process and then a first written warning.

The tribunal held that the dismissal process was unfair. On 7 March 2019 the respondent proceeded with the disciplinary hearing in the claimant's absence, even though it knew she was absent from work with chest symptoms / heart problems and had not given her a final opportunity to make written representations. The tribunal also found that the appeal was unfair because Professor Shelton-Mayes unreasonably prevented Mr Davenport, the claimant's chosen companion, from advocating and summing up her case. Those procedural defects were enough to make the dismissal unfair, even though the tribunal considered the respondent had a genuine belief in the misconduct alleged.

On remedy, the tribunal found the claimant would inevitably have been dismissed even if a fair process had been followed, so no compensatory loss was awarded. It assessed the basic award at £3,937.50, applied a 10% uplift under s.207A for the ACAS Code breach, and then reduced the figure by 80% for contributory conduct, arriving at £866.25. The judgment states that this was the amount that would be awarded if no further representations were received within 14 days.

The claimant's holiday pay complaint was dismissed. The tribunal said there was not enough evidence to decide how many days' leave had been taken, how much, if any, had been carried over from the previous holiday year, or whether any balance remained due at the end of employment.