Unfair dismissal: on the grounds of a criminal conviction
Introduction
This article outlines an employer’s obligations under current employment protection legislation. Under this legislation, employees who meet various qualifying conditions have the right not to be unfairly dismissed. Employees who have been unfairly dismissed are able to seek a remedy by complaining to an employment tribunal.
Net Lawman provides a number of other information articles on dismissal. We recommend you read them first and then read this article on dismissal for pregnancy or maternity if it applies to you. The Links to the other articles can be found right.
Having read the two primary articles, you will already know how dismissal is defined, the different types and the time limits for making a claim.
Dismissal in connection with criminal offences
As you will already know from our general articles (links above), for a dismissal to be fair the employer must not only have a valid reason for the dismissal, but must also act reasonably.
In a case in which the employee is suspected of a criminal offence, the real issue is whether the employer genuinely believed on reasonable grounds that the applicant was guilty of the offence in question and not, as in a criminal court, whether it is established beyond all reasonable doubt that the employee is guilty of the particular matter with which charged.
Belief on reasonable grounds in this context will normally involve proper inquiries into the matter on the part of the employer. If the employer conducts such inquiries and gives the employee an opportunity to explain what has happened and then has reasonable grounds for coming to the conclusion that the employee can no longer be retained, the tribunal will usually find that the employer acted reasonably even if the employee is subsequently acquitted by a criminal court of the offence in question. On the other hand, if the employer dismisses the employee without making proper inquiries or giving the employee an opportunity to explain, the tribunal may well find that the employer acted unreasonably and that the dismissal was unfair.
Further, whether or an employee’s criminal offence justifies dismissal depends (amongst other things) on the nature of the offence and the type of work for which he is employed.
Whether the offence was committed at work or out of working hours is often a relevant factor.
If by chance you find some error of law or fact in any Net Lawman information page, do please tell us. We should also welcome your suggestions for new subjects for information pages. These notes:
Do not provide a complete or authoritative statement of the law;
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