Partner sacked today, help!

zzzLazyDaisy

AS Your OH started work for the employer before 5th April 2012 he needed 12 months service to qualify for protection from unfair dismissal. This means that the employer is obliged to follow a fair procedure, which includes conducting a thorough investigation and having a disciplinary meeting with him before making a decision. He should also have been told of his right to be accompanied at the hearing and of his right of appeal.

If he has already been dismissed (ie not just suspended pending an investigation) then on the facts as you have described them he has been unfairly dismissed (although any compensation awarded can be reduced if the tribunal take the view that he contributed to his dismissal by his conduct).

Normally the advice is to appeal before going to a tribunal, but if they have dismissed him without following procedures and without informing him of his right of appeal, then he wouldn't be expected to know that - and the only thing it would be likely to achieve would be to give them chance to put right the procedural errors, so there wouldn't be any point.

One thing I would say, though (and I apologise in advance for this)... it is not unknown for an employee to keep disciplinary proceedings from their family so as not to worry them, in the hope that they won't end up dismissed. In other words, it is possible that the company did follow procedures, and he did have the relevant letters, but just didn't tell you about them.

Just one further point - *IF* he has been dismissed for gross misconduct, he is not entitled to notice or pay in lieu of notice. However if he makes a tribunal claim he should claim unfair dismissal and breach of contract for failure to pay notice pay, as if the tribunal find the dismissal unfair, they will also award notice pay, but only if he has claimed it. Ditto any unpaid holiday pay.

Hope this helps and sorry that you have to deal with this worry.