An employee who was dismissed for attending a gin festival ‘to get away from it all’ while off sick with stress following the death of three friends has been awarded nearly £30,000 for unfair dismissal. The Courier UK reports that the employer dismissed Mr Reid for gross misconduct after learning through Facebook that he had attended a gin festival. In a decision which highlights the importance of considering mitigating circumstances, the EJ described Reid’s treatment as “egregiously unfair”, stating that none of the decision-makers appeared to have engaged seriously with the circumstances leading to Reid’s absence from work or his explanation for going to a gin festival, or for the Facebook postings. The EJ labelled management actions as “remarkably insensitive” and a “flagrant disregard” for fairness.

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