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Sanction of dismissal for storing and sharing confidential information too harsh

One of M’s colleagues provided him with a photograph (taken secretly) of an entry in a line manager’s diary.
Survellience

In Morris v Metrolink RATP Dev Ltd, one of M’s colleagues provided him with a photograph (taken secretly) of an entry in a line manager’s diary about how candidates had performed in a restructuring exercise assessment which resulted in five union members being placed at risk of redundancy. M thought the comments were detrimental to the unsuccessful candidates. M asked to meet with HR. When it became apparent how the information had been obtained, disciplinary proceedings resulted in M being dismissed for storing and sharing a manager’s private and confidential information. The Court of Appeal upheld an ET’s decision that the dismissal was automatically unfair under S.152 Trade Union and Labour Relations (Consolidation) Act 1992, as M was taking part in the activities of an independent trade union by storing the information and raising it on behalf of members; it was also unfair under ordinary unfair dismissal provisions. The very limited way in which M used the information, which directly concerned his members and their interests, was not a major departure from good industrial relations practice and at most some sort of warning for storing and not deleting the information might have been appropriate.


This update provides summary information and comment on the subject areas covered. Where employment tribunal and appellate court cases are reported, the information does not set out all of the facts, the legal arguments presented and help judgments made in every aspect of the case. Click on the links to access full details. If no link is provided, contact us for more information.  Employment law is subject to constant change either by statute or by interpretation by the courts. While every care has been taken in compiling this information, SM&B cannot be held responsible for any errors or omissions. Specialist legal advice must be taken on any legal issues that may arise before embarking upon any formal course of action.

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