Resignation 



There is no dismissal if an employee resigns voluntarily. Employees are free to end the contract at any time by resigning. This is usually done by giving the notice required by the contract.
A resignation need not be “accepted” by the employer in order to take effect (Wallace v Ladbrokes Betting and Gaming (UK) Limited [2016] UKEAT/0168/15/JOJ). This can have important implications when it comes to working out the date on which the employment ended (the “effective date of termination”). Mistakes can lead to missed time limits and lost rights, so great care is needed. See page 376: Effective date of termination.


To take effect, a resignation must be communicated to the employer. There is no rule that communication must be to a particular individual, for example, the person named on the resignation letter. It is enough for it to reach the employer’s address (Horwood v Lincolnshire County Council [2012] UKEAT 0462/11/0304). An employee who has drafted but not sent a letter of resignation cannot be said to have resigned (Edwards v Surrey Police [1999] IRLR 456).



There is not normally a dismissal where an employee opts to resign on mutually agreed terms. It is not possible to bring a claim for unfair dismissal after a genuinely consensual termination, and care must be taken when negotiating departure terms to make sure members understand the effect on their ability to bring future claims. A consensual termination requires genuine freedom of choice. Without genuine choice, the termination will be a dismissal (Sandhu v Jan de Rijk Transport Limited [2007] EWCA 430, Khan v HGS Global Limited [2016] UKEAT/0176/15/DM).


Agreed terminations and voluntary resignations can also make it harder to claim state benefits, or third party benefits linked to income protection, such as mortgage protection insurance.


Someone who resigns because they are threatened that if they do not resign, they will be dismissed, will have been dismissed. In practice employees in this situation need to be very cautious, as the employer is likely to deny the member’s version of events. An employee who is forced to resign should make a careful record of the details of the exchange with the employer and take advice from their rep as soon as possible. This is the aspect of the employment relationship most likely to be affected by a change to the law in July 2013 which introduced the concept of the “protected conversation”. For more information, see page 510.



An employee who hands in their notice cannot withdraw it without the employer’s consent. There is a rare exception for so-called “heat of the moment” cases, where an employee resigns rashly out of anger, severe stress, or emotional immaturity. In these circumstances, the law allows a very short window (usually hours at most) in which to calm down and step back from words spoken in the heat of the moment — to say: “I didn’ t really mean it” (Martin v Yeoman Aggregate Ltd [1983] IRLR 49). An employee who resigns in the heat of the moment needs to act very quickly to try to put things right if they want to get back to work, taking urgent advice from a rep and making themselves available for work as soon as possible. A careful note should be kept of everything said and done, which can form the basis of a witness statement if a claim later needs to be brought. 



Only exceptionally can an employer ever withdraw words of dismissal uttered in the heat of the moment (Willoughby v CF Capital PLC [2011] EWCA Civ 1115).