The court was asked whether the claimant had been dismissed or had resigned. He had attended a meeting to be told that his contract was to be finished. The company later complained that he had resigned when they were unable to reach a compromise on the terms.
Held: The appeal succeeded. The case was to be remitted on the basis of procedural unfairness. The events took place in one meeting on the day. He had been dismissed. The court discussed the case law: ‘in none of the cases in which the employee has been held to resign has the resignation occurred during the same interview/discussion in which the question of dismissal has been raised, and in no case in which the termination of the employee’s employment has occurred in a single interview has a resignation been found to have taken place. The reason for this, I venture to think, is not far to seek. Resignation, as the authorities indicate, implies some form of negotiation and discussion; it predicates a result which is a genuine choice on the part of the employee. Plainly, if the employee has had the opportunity to take independent advice and then offers to resign, that fact would be powerful evidence pointing towards resignation rather than dismissal.’
Judges:
Pill, Wall, Maurice Kay LJJ
Citations:
[2007] EWCA Civ 430, [2007] IRLR 519, [2007] ICR 1137
Links:
Jurisdiction:
England and Wales
Citing:
Appeal from – C Sandhu v Jan De Rijk Transport EAT 6-Feb-2006
EAT Unfair Dismissal – Exclusions including worker/jurisdiction – 11AA and 8EE – Unfair Dismissal – dismissal/ambiguous resignation – Practice and Procedure – admissibility of evidence
Appellant called to . .
Cited – Sheffield v Oxford Controls Co Ltd EAT 18-Dec-1978
The company had been owned equally by Mr. Sheffield and Mr. Raison. The Raisons gained effective control of the company on the issue of shares. Mr. and Mrs. Sheffield had been employed, but after a row, she was told she would have to go. This . .
Cited – Crowley v Ashland (UK) Chemicals Ltd EAT 20-Apr-1979
The employers were unhappy about the claimant’s performance though they gave him no warning. He was invited to a meeting in London to discuss pay but was there told that they were to discuss his shortcomings. A list was read out to him, and he was . .
Cited – Staffordshire County Council v Donovan 1981
Mrs Donovan was an assistant principal planning officer who was subject to ongoing disciplinary proceedings which were themselves subject to a right of appeal on her part. Mrs Donovan was represented in those proceedings by her union organiser and . .
Cited – Polkey v A E Dayton Services Limited HL 19-Nov-1987
Mr Polkey was employed as a driver. The company decided to replace four van drivers with two van salesmen and a representative. Mr Polkey and two other van drivers were made redundant. Without warning, he was called in and informed that he had been . .
Cited – Birch and Humber v The University of Liverpool CA 1985
Termination of employment by mutual consent in such a way as not to involve a dismissal is not a statutory redundancy. Ackner LJ said: ‘I put to her the simple example of an employer who envisages some time in the future, eg because of new . .
Cited – Pascoe v Hallen and Medway 1975
The applicant worked in a factory. She was told that if she did not resign she would be dismissed. She left but then claimed to have been dismissed.
Held: She had been dismissed. . .
Cited – Jones v Freeman 1974
The applicant was a hairdresser, who refused to work on Saturday afternoons and was told at a meeting with her employers that they were not prepared to employ her any longer on that basis and that she would have to go. She left before the formal . .
Cited – East Sussex County Council v Walker 1972
(National Industrial Relations Court) Mrs Walker was a school cook, who was told that her services were no longer required. She was invited to resign, and did so. The court was asked to decide whether she had resigned or been dismissed.
Held: . .
Cited – Scott v Formica Ltd 1975
The applicant was employed as a process worker who refused to accept a transfer to a different task. He was given the choice of resigning or being dismissed. She left but claimed to have been dismissed.
Held: She had been dismissed. . .
Cited – Jones v Mid-Glamorgan County Council EAT 8-May-1995
. .
Cited – Jones v Mid-Glamorgan County Council CA 13-May-1997
On being told he was to be dismissed, Mr Jones had taken early retirement. He made a claim in the County Court that his pension had been wrongly reduced, The court rejected his allegation that he had acted under duress. His subsequent claim of . .
Cited – Salton v Durham County Council EAT 1989
Mr Salton was a social worker who had been withdrawn against his will from Durham’s emergency duty team. During disciplinary proceedings, he received a letter in which Durham raised additional complaints against him and argued that he should be . .
Cited – Yeboah v Crofton CA 31-May-2002
The industrial tribunal had made a finding of direct race discrimination. The Employment Appeal Tribunal found the decision perverse, and ordered a rehearing. The applicant appealed that order.
Held: The EAT must be careful not to take . .
Lists of cited by and citing cases may be incomplete.
Employment
Updated: 23 October 2022; Ref: scu.251799
