Employee who mistakenly sent an email calling a customer a “tw*t” wins their unfair dismissal claim
While this may on the face of it sound like a strange decision, when you review the facts of this case, it is clear that the employee was unfairly dismissed. This case demonstrates the importance of identifying the correct reason for the dismissal, and following a fair and reasonable procedure before confirming any decision to dismiss. In this case, the company followed a catalogue of errors in the disciplinary procedure they followed.
In Jones v Vale Curtains and Blinds, Ms Jones worked as a part-time administrator for just over 2 years and, prior to her dismissal for gross misconduct, had a clean disciplinary record. On 14 June 2023, Ms Jones received an email from a customer who had made repeated complaints about his order and had tried to get a full refund for his curtains. Ms Jones felt that the customer had been rude to her previously on the phone. He emailed requesting a change to the time of his appointment, and Ms Jones intended to forward the email to her colleague asking him to change the appointment. She included the comment “he’s a tw*t so it doesn’t matter if you can’t”. Unfortunately, she hit reply instead of forward so the email was sent to the customer. Ms Jones was immediately shocked and upset to realise her mistake and apologised profusely to the customer’s wife. Ms Jones immediately informed her manager, who assured her it was alright, and she would deal with the customer. On speaking to the customer, she said that Ms Jones would be reprimanded.
Following the incident, the management team carried out no real investigation. They did not interview Ms Jones or the customer. The Judge found as a matter of fact that the customer had contacted the company directly later, and made threats about publicising the incident and leaving a poor review on Trustpilot. This led to the company’s decision to “get rid of” Ms Jones. Therefore, it was not the email, but the threat of publicising the incident and leaving a poor review which was the reason for Ms Jones’ dismissal. There was also evidence to suggest that the decision was made prior to the disciplinary hearing taking place, as the owner of the company had instructed her manager to “get rid of” Ms Jones. In addition, Ms Jones was not asked if she was happy to proceed without a companion, nor was she given a copy of the disciplinary procedure. After being told she was being dismissed with immediate effect, she was not told about her right of appeal. Ms Jones did appeal, and this was dealt with by the same manager who had dealt with the disciplinary hearing.
The Tribunal found that the reason for dismissal was not conduct, but some other substantial reason which could justify Ms Jones’ dismissal. However, the company did not act fairly in the circumstances of the case in treating it as a sufficient reason to dismiss, and the process they followed was a sham.
The Tribunal also considered whether there should be a reduction to compensation under Polkey (where following a fair process would have led to a fair dismissal) but concluded that if a fair procedure had been followed, Ms Jones would not have been dismissed. On the day of the incident, Ms Jones’ manager thought it was a regrettable mistake, but not a disciplinary matter. It was only when the complaint from the customer escalated that the company decided to dismiss.
This case demonstrates the importance of following a fair and reasonable procedure. Had the company handled the incident differently, correctly identifying the reason for the disciplinary action, completing a full investigation and giving a copy of the relevant documents to the employee in advance, allowing the employee to be accompanied, and approaching the disciplinary hearing with an open mind, the decision to dismiss could have been justified. The company also missed an opportunity to correct these errors on appeal, by failing to hold an appeal hearing or appoint an independent manager to handle the appeal.
If you need any support with a disciplinary matter and ensuring that a fair and reasonable procedure is followed, please do get in touch with a member of the team.