TRANSCRIPTS
I strongly recommend that you study the case of
Wise Group v Mitchell [2005] All ER 168. It clearly sets out the differences between unfair and wrongful dismissal …
Unit 9, Lesson 2, Exercise D 2.3
1 Increasingly we find that when people do lose their jobs, especially when they believe it’s through no fault of their own, they want to know how the law will protect them.
2 Now, in terms of the contract of employment, the employer must have a good reason for dismissing the employee and has to show that the reason is genuine and justifies the dismissal.
3 As we shall see, the courts take a different approach when employees have lost their jobs after being with a company for less than a year.
4 It could be argued that the management simply believed that the employee was incompetent and unable to carry out the task, regardless of whether or not training was offered.
5 From the point of view of the contract, a serious breach would be something like a complete change of the job description or a substantial reduction in pay.
6 Of course, it’s true to say that the same reason can also be given in cases of unfair dismissal because your employer has a genuine reason which justifies your dismissal.
7 Research has shown that in fact the courts did frequently find in favour of the employer.
8 So it should be clear that these three major differences have very practical applications for the people who have lost their jobs.
Unit 9, Lesson 3, Exercise A 2.4 1 'wrongful, 'statute, re'solve, 'conduct
2 pro'vision, tri'bunal, dis'missal, 'damages
3 em'ployment law, 'common law, breach of 'contract, re'tirement age
4 'actually, 'generally, 'usually, de'monstrably, 'crucially
Unit 9, Lesson 3, Exercise C 2.5 Part 3
OK, so moving on to look at some of the statutes involving unfair dismissal. The key statute is the Employment Rights Act 1996, where what constitutes fair dismissal is defined. If you look at section 98 of the ERA you will see that the reasons for fair dismissal are covered under six heads. I’m going to go through the six heads quickly, then look in more detail at two of them.
Number one is conduct. That is, the way in which you behave at work. If, for example, you frequently come to work under the influence of drugs or alcohol, your employer has a legitimate reason to dismiss you. Number two is capability. Employees should have the necessary skills and qualifications to do the job to the required standard. If they do not, there are grounds for fair dismissal. Thirdly, there is redundancy. If the company closes down or downsizes, there may be no more work for the employee to do. The next head is retirement. If an employee reaches the normal retirement age, or 65 if there is no normal retirement age, the employer has the right to dismiss, provided the correct procedures have been followed. We then have what is known as ‘statutory restriction’. This is where an employee is no longer able to perform the job, because, in doing so, they would be breaking the law. An example of this would be if a delivery driver lost his driving licence.
Finally, there is what the ERA terms ‘another substantial reason’. In other words, there is an overwhelming reason to dismiss an employee. For example, if an employee is sent to prison, or less drastically, where an employee just cannot work with a colleague because of a personality clash. Benny, Sargeant and Jefferson point out in Employment Law, in the Blackstone’s Law Questions and Answers series, one of your core texts – this edition was published in 2007 – that this particular clause is open to wide interpretation. But you don’t need to worry about that at this stage.
By the way, I see that some of you are using the Cornell note-taking system. That’s very good. Do you all know about this? No? Right, well, if you want to know more about it, I suggest you look at How to Study in College by Walter Pauk, the 9th edition, published in 2007. It’s very good, and it should be in the university library. I’m sure that you all know the importance of taking good notes – and this system is particularly useful.
129
Page 1 |
Page 2 |
Page 3 |
Page 4 |
Page 5 |
Page 6 |
Page 7 |
Page 8 |
Page 9 |
Page 10 |
Page 11 |
Page 12 |
Page 13 |
Page 14 |
Page 15 |
Page 16 |
Page 17 |
Page 18 |
Page 19 |
Page 20 |
Page 21 |
Page 22 |
Page 23 |
Page 24 |
Page 25 |
Page 26 |
Page 27 |
Page 28 |
Page 29 |
Page 30 |
Page 31 |
Page 32 |
Page 33 |
Page 34 |
Page 35 |
Page 36 |
Page 37 |
Page 38 |
Page 39 |
Page 40 |
Page 41 |
Page 42 |
Page 43 |
Page 44 |
Page 45 |
Page 46 |
Page 47 |
Page 48 |
Page 49 |
Page 50 |
Page 51 |
Page 52 |
Page 53 |
Page 54 |
Page 55 |
Page 56 |
Page 57 |
Page 58 |
Page 59 |
Page 60 |
Page 61 |
Page 62 |
Page 63 |
Page 64 |
Page 65 |
Page 66 |
Page 67 |
Page 68 |
Page 69 |
Page 70 |
Page 71 |
Page 72 |
Page 73 |
Page 74 |
Page 75 |
Page 76 |
Page 77 |
Page 78 |
Page 79 |
Page 80 |
Page 81 |
Page 82 |
Page 83 |
Page 84 |
Page 85 |
Page 86 |
Page 87 |
Page 88 |
Page 89 |
Page 90 |
Page 91 |
Page 92 |
Page 93 |
Page 94 |
Page 95 |
Page 96 |
Page 97 |
Page 98 |
Page 99 |
Page 100 |
Page 101 |
Page 102 |
Page 103 |
Page 104 |
Page 105 |
Page 106 |
Page 107 |
Page 108 |
Page 109 |
Page 110 |
Page 111 |
Page 112 |
Page 113 |
Page 114 |
Page 115 |
Page 116 |
Page 117 |
Page 118 |
Page 119 |
Page 120 |
Page 121 |
Page 122 |
Page 123 |
Page 124 |
Page 125 |
Page 126 |
Page 127 |
Page 128 |
Page 129 |
Page 130 |
Page 131 |
Page 132 |
Page 133 |
Page 134 |
Page 135 |
Page 136 |
Page 137 |
Page 138 |
Page 139
