Suspicion of guilt

An investigation into misconduct may prove inconclusive, but there are several cases in which an employer’s decision to dismiss an employee who is only suspected of misconduct has been held to be fair.

In Monie v Coral Racing Ltd [1980] EWCA Civ J1031-3, one of two employees, or possibly both working together, had stolen money from their employer’s safe. The employer was unable to establish which it was and dismissed them both. The Court of Appeal held that the dismissals were fair, even though one of the employees may have been innocent. The court did stress that this is not a universal rule and said that whether dismissal on suspicion of guilt is fair will always depend on the facts.

See also the case of L v K on page 64, where dismissal was fair for “some other substantial reason” (SOSR).