UK contract and employment law Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2000 words

UK contract and employment law - Essay Example She became negligent with her work. She committed 2 negligent acts which were both serious in nature and affected the company. After the first incident, Clarissa was informally warned but the manager still showed faith in her. But after the second incidence, manager lost confidence in her and she was fired with a six month notice. Her contract will terminate on 31st March 2012. Also keeping in the mind the safety of her colleagues, she was asked to take â€Å"garden leave† wherein she was not needed to come to office during the notice period but would be paid for it. She was not happy with this and wanted to continue working. She has received an offer from Flare Missiles to work for them, provided she joins on the 1st of February 2012. She needs advise on whether she can successfully pursue a claim for unfair dismissal compensation against Cascade and whether she can lawfully accept flare's offer of employment. Unfair Dismissal Compensation The question of whether Clarissa can pursue a claim for unfair dismissal compensation will depend on whether it was an unfair dismissal. The fact that she was dismissed is clearly established in the facts of the case. She will be able to successfully claim the compensation if she can prove that the dismissal was an unfair one. If Precision Missiles had followed all the procedures and abided by the law, then she will not be able to claim the compensation as it will not be an unfair dismissal. First and foremost for Clarissa to have a right against unfair dismissal, she should have worked in the company for at least one year and Clarissa fulfils this requirement as she has been working for over 30 years in the company. Now, Clarissa has to be prove that the dismissal was unfair according to the Employment Rights Act of 1996, Section 98A(1) (‘Procedural fairness’)1 The Employment Rights Act of 1996, Section 98A(1) (‘Procedural fairness’) states that: A dismissal without completion of the standar d procedure (wholly or mainly attributable to the failure of the employer) will be unfair. Whether the dismissal was an unfair dismissal will depend on the 2 stage test that any an unfair dismissal must go through2. Stage One: The Reason Once the unfair dismissal compensation claim is made, the responsibility to show that dismissal was based on a reason falls on the employer3. In this case, Precision Missiles will argue that they had a fair reason to dismiss Clarissa. According to the Employment Rights Act of 1996, Section 98(2) they have to prove that their reason was a fair one. In the current scenario the reason for dismissal was negligence and carelessness in carrying out her responsibilities which are a part of her job profile. This was not a one distinct incident but was repeated twice and in both cases the consequences of her negligence could have been critical. In the first, incidence her negligence would directly impact negatively on the brand images that Precision Missiles had built with its client. This could seriously damage its image and affect future business. The second incidence if not rectified by her colleagues could have been a disaster for the company. Even though it was found out that her negligence would not have caused serious damage, a repetition of the incidence could have been critical. The above reason could be justified as a fair one by using