The Labour Court upheld a finding that a hospital fairly dismissed a social care worker after a seven-year suspension. In its determination dated 26 October 2017, the Court rejected the employee’s unfair dismissal complaint and upheld the Adjudication Officer’s decision. Both the hospital and the employee had appealed.
The employee, who had worked for the hospital since 2001, said the disciplinary process was unfair and that allegations and supporting evidence had not been properly put to her. The hospital said dismissal followed an investigation into her professional practice. The Court found the investigation was in-depth and free from pre-judgement or bias, and that the hospital reasonably considered lesser sanctions before deciding to dismiss her.
The Court described the seven-year suspension as unsatisfactory and said the hospital should have dealt with the concerns more expeditiously. It also said delays were due in part to the employee’s refusal to participate in earlier reviews, her actions in other proceedings and objections to aspects of the investigation.