Frustration of contract
[ch 7: page 109]There will be no dismissal if the contract of employment is “frustrated”. This is where an unexpected event takes place through no fault of either party, so serious that the contract can no longer continue. When a contract is frustrated, it comes to an end automatically. The employee no longer has any rights under it and cannot claim unfair dismissal.
Although it is theoretically possible for an employment contract to be frustrated by illness, in reality tribunals rarely apply the doctrine of frustration to ill-health dismissals because it robs employees of their chance to challenge the fairness of the outcome. In any event, if an employee is disabled, a contract can only be “frustrated” once all reasonable adjustments have been made under section 20, Equality Act 2010 (see page 57).