Under the ACAS Code for Disciplinaries, the employer should invite the employee to a disciplinary meeting to discuss the allegations before reaching any decision.
Does a manager holding a disciplinary have to meet an employee before deciding to dismiss?
In the Employment Appeal Tribunal (EAT) decision in Charalambous v National Bank of Greece however, a disciplinary meeting was not required before dismissal. The dismissing manager did not have a meeting with the employee before dismissing, and a decision was taken based on the investigation reports. A meeting did however take place at the appeal stage.
The EAT held that failure to hold a disciplinary meeting in this instance did not render the dismissal unfair. It was desirable to have a meeting first, but the key principle was to give the employee an opportunity to explain their position sufficiently before any decision to dismiss was taken. In this case, a meeting did then take place at the appeal stage.
Employers would be wise to hold disciplinary meetings with the employee if at all possible. However, there might be circumstances in which that is not possible, in which case other means of obtaining the employee’s response to the allegations can be considered.
Reculver Solicitors provide employment law advice and representation.
With thanks to barrister Daniel Barnett for news of this decision.