Unfair Dismissal Advice

wall

Hi Everyone

Just after some advice on what to do; my girlfriend was sacked from her job on Wednesday night, completely out of the blue!

She works as a beauty salon as a receptionist, and she finished her shift on Wed night, exchanged goodbyes with the salon owner and manager and set off home.

Fifteen minutes later, the manager phoned her up and informed her that the owner had instructed her to sack her. My partner demanded to speak to the owner, who said that she was sacked due to "opening up a rival business (salon) and is actively poaching clients".

The conversation didn't last much longer as the owner is not particularly understanding, but my partner was not given a chance to explain.

She has worked part-time at this salon for 2 years 4 months, and there has not been any disciplinary issues at all. She does not possess a contract, she did ask for one when she started but was told that "we don't do them".

Since then, i picked her wages up yesterday, and her P45 and payslip arrived in the post this morning.

My partner has not opened up a rival salon. She is however working one day a week (for herself) for the last month as a nail technician in a different salon several miles away from the other one. She had not told anyone at work (staff or any clients) about her working as a nail technician, as she believes it is her private business.

What shall we do?

She's obviously been unfairly dismissed, but we don't know the right steps to take. We don't want to spend a fortune on solicitors only to recieve less money back in compensation!

But we want to do something, as my partner is very upset, and would like her name cleared of any wrong doing!

Thanks in advance!!

BlueIsTheColour

Get on the phone to Acas on Monday and see what their advice is, they can tell you the ins and outs of unfair dismissal claims

www.acas.org.uk

Good luck with it, it does sound as though it has been handled very badly indeed

LittleVoice

She would have been entitled to two weeks' notice.

I would suggest she will need to appeal against the decision to dismiss.

Given the employer's apparent attitude to employment law, I expect this will progress through the Employment Tribunal route.

Horace

I can see both sides here - I can see why the salon is disgruntled and probably quite rightly so as your girlfriend by her own admission is working as a self-employed nail technician in another salon. It could be that she was seen working in this salon by one of the clients of the salon where she has worked for the past 2 years.

Unfortunately the owner has gone about her dismissal in a cackhanded way mainly out of fear - she fears that in the competitive world of the beauty industry and your girlfriend may just pinch clients. Your girlfriend may not be actively recruiting clients but some are bound to follow her to her new place of work.

In any case your girlfriend needs to contact ACAS.

Zazen999

If she had a contract, there would probably have been a line about 'conflict of interest', but as she is part time it is not out of the realms of possibility that she would work in another salon.

Even if this were the case, that they found out rather than were told, they need to follow ACAS or their own disciplinary procedure.

I believe that she needs to put an appeal [as per LV's response] in about her sacking in order to continue to take them to a tribunal. Call an employment solicitor up on Monday and ask the best steps. They might well tell you what to put in the letter and ask you to contact them once you receive a response.

balustrada

wall wrote: »

She is however working one day a week (for herself) for the last month as a nail technician in a different salon several miles away from the other one. She had not told anyone at work (staff or any clients) about her working as a nail technician, as she believes it is her private business.

Working for a competitor could be viewed as undermining the employer's business interests and so a breach of trust that constitutes gross misconduct thus providing the employer with reasonable grounds for dismissal. This link will probably be helpful to you: http://www.direct.gov.uk/en/Employment/RedundancyAndLeavingYourJob/DG_10026692

SomeBozo

Does her employer (at the salon) offer the same (or similiar service) as the nail place she works one day a week for?

Bozo

KME91

she is definitely a candidate for a complaint of unfair dismissal. what should happen is that the employee is advised in writing that a disciplinary issue has been brought to the employer's attention, and which part of the contract or employer policy the employee has breached. the employee may then be suspended or continue to work depending on the severity of the issue and the HR policies the employer has in place.

an investigation will then take place where the investigator will gather all the facts and attempt to prove or disprove the accusation. this will include interviewing the accused, and collecting their side of the story. the investigator will present the facts at a disciplinary hearing to which the accused will attend, and will be able to raise questions or dispute the investigator's description of the situation.

after that the hearing panel, normally a manager and a hr bod, will consider the evidence and make a decision, and decide next steps or appropriate punishment, which will be conveyed in writing to the accused. gross misconduct can bring about instant dismissal. only after this process has been followed though.

however...... to have committed an act of gross misconduct you have to have a policy in place that says you cannot do x y or z. if no such policy exists or it has never been brought to the employees attention they cannot be expected to know that they would be breaching the policy. this is why i think this girl has a strong case.

So appeal on two grounds:
1 failure to follow the appropriate disciplinary process
2 no breach of contract has occured as there is no policy prohibiting her actions

a word of warning though, if you want to claim unfair or wrongful dismissal at an emplyment tribunal, you need to have been employed for longer than 12 months. less than that and your rights are very limited and she probably would not have a case. if she's been in the job more than 12 months she has a very strong case from what i can see. acas and citizens advice can help you too.

naijapower

I can see the paranoia of her employer but they have gone about it the wrong way. She ought to contact CAB and ACAS in the first instance. I strongly feel she stands a good chance for unfair dismissal

Debt_Free_Chick

You need to read her contract very carefully. There is normally a term that prohibits you from undertaking any other work - even if you only work part time.

It does sound rather harsh, though and there's a procedure to be followed, unless her working somewhere else is included as gross misconduct in her contract.

Read the contract - every word, at least twice!

Zazen999

Debt_Free_Chick wrote: »

You need to read her contract very carefully. There is normally a term that prohibits you from undertaking any other work - even if you only work part time.

It does sound rather harsh, though and there's a procedure to be followed, unless her working somewhere else is included as gross misconduct in her contract.

Read the contract - every word, at least twice!

There isn't a contract...