The claimant asserted constructive dismissal.
Held: ‘The argument has revolved around the fact that because of the invitation to the respondent employers to call no evidence their side of the story was never given and so the case was never fully investigated. At first sight that might sound odd because, of course, the onus of proof lay upon Mr Ridley as claimant to show that he was dismissed, and it may be asked, why was it necessary for him in order to do that to be able to pray in aid evidence other than himself and any witnesses he chose to call? But in reality the position is somewhat different in this class of case, where what is being alleged is constructive dismissal. In effect the claimant is saying that he was driven out by the conduct of the employer. The test varied from time to time, but is now firmly established. However it is put, in order to understand the whole position it is very often necessary to see what is said on the employer’s side. Only then can the whole picture be seen. Furthermore, as the Appeal Tribunal has said more than once in different classes of case, the cases which are heard by Industrial Tribunals, are very different from the ordinary case heard by regular courts, and the litigation of necessity takes – or certainly at all events ought to take – something of the form of an inquiry: so that ordinary customary legal procedures need to be applied with that requirement in mind. It is really essential that at the end of the day the parties should feel that the whole of the facts have been investigated. Particularly of course is that so in a case such as this where the complaint is one of constructive dismissal. … It seems to us that in all the circumstances of this case [stopping the case at the end of Mr Ridley’s evidence] was not a satisfactory approach, and they would have been wiser to have heard what the employers had to say.’
Judges:
Philips J
Citations:
[1978] 13 ITR 195
Jurisdiction:
England and Wales
Cited by:
Cited – Logan v Commissioners of Customs and Excise CA 23-Jul-2003
The respondent had at the close of the claimant’s case submitted that it had no case to answer. The tribunal agreed and discharged the claim without hearing from the respondent. The employer appealed the EAT’s decision to allow her appeal.
Lists of cited by and citing cases may be incomplete.
Employment
Updated: 29 April 2022; Ref: scu.185971