Claimant v Royal Mail Group Limited — 2024

The claimant was employed as a postal worker by Royal Mail Group Limited from 6 February 1995 until his summary dismissal on 31 January 2024. He had stopped attending work from 28 November 2023 after saying he intended to withdraw his labour because of concerns about changes connected with a collective agreement between the respondent and the CWU.

The Tribunal found that the claimant was told on a number of occasions to return to work and raise a grievance, but he did not do so. He also handed in his ID badge and locker key, said the working relationship had irretrievably broken down, and indicated that he wanted a mutual termination arrangement rather than a return to work.

The Tribunal accepted that the reason for dismissal was conduct, namely the claimant's continued unauthorised absence from work. It found that the respondent followed a fair procedure, that the appeal was a rehearing conducted thoroughly and impartially, and that the decision to dismiss fell within the band of reasonable responses. The unfair dismissal claim therefore failed.