Conduct outside work

Q: What right does the employer have to discipline workers for conduct outside of work?

A: Whether or not it will be considered reasonable for an employer to discipline an employee for conduct outside work will depend on whether the conduct affects the employer’s business in some way. A lot will therefore depend on the nature of the conduct in question, and the nature of the individual’s job.

In one case — Malik v National Plastics Ltd EAT/682/78 — serious fighting, which ocurred outside the workplace after hours and resulted in substantial injury, caused “discord and fear” in the workplace and justified dismissal, according to the Employment Appeal Tribunal. But in the case of Lanarkshire Health Board v McLeish EAT/22/91, dismissing a nurse who had assaulted a fellow employee outside working hours was unfair as it was unrelated to the workplace.