Requiring a higher standard

In some circumstances, where disciplinary procedures could result in the employee losing their entire career, the courts have said that a higher standard of investigation is required, within the band of reasonable responses. For example, in Salford Royal NHS Foundation Trust v Roldan [2010] EWCA Civ 522, a Filipino nurse was accused of mistreating a patient, based on a colleague’s evidence. The Court of Appeal said that a particularly high standard was required in this case because summary dismissal meant the end of her nursing career, the loss of Roldan’s work permit and deportation.

Similarly, in Crawford v Suffolk Mental Health Partnership [2012] EWCA Civ 138, a tribunal ruled that a nurse was unfairly dismissed following an allegation that she used inappropriate restraint methods on an elderly dementia patient. The dismissal was unfair in particular because the hospital conducted a staged reconstruction of the incident without inviting the claimant and her representative. The standard of investigation was not high enough.