In Talon Engineering v Smith, TE discovered that S had sent unprofessional emails to a customer referring to an unnamed colleague as a ‘knob’ and a ‘knobhead’. S was invited to a disciplinary hearing which was postponed because she was ill and then on holiday. S was invited to a rescheduled hearing which she asked to be postponed because her union representative would not be available until 2 weeks later. TE refused, held the disciplinary hearing without S being present and summarily dismissed her. The EAT held that the ET had been entitled to find that S’s dismissal was procedurally unfair because, having postponed the disciplinary hearing once, TE had acted unreasonably in refusing to postpone it again for a short period to allow S’s chosen companion to accompany her. The ET had rightly considered how a reasonable employer would have behaved and that after 21 years’ service TE was too impatient and hasty in not accommodating a further short delay to enable S to be represented by her chosen companion. The fact that the refusal of the postponement request did not breach S’s accompaniment rights under S.10(5) of the Employment Relations Act 1999 did not affect the fairness of the decision.

This update provides summary information and comment on the subject areas covered. Where employment tribunal and appellate court cases are reported, the information does not set out all of the facts, the legal arguments presented, and judgments made in every aspect of the case. Click on the links to access full details. If no link is provided, contact us for more information. Employment law is subject to constant change either by statute or by interpretation by the courts. While every care has been taken in compiling this information, SM&B cannot be held responsible for any errors or omissions. Specialist legal advice must be taken on any legal issues that may arise before embarking upon any formal course of action.