22 Dec 2005
CHIEF EXECUTIVE OF THE DEPARTMENT OF INLAND REVENUE V BUCHANAN AND SYMES CA CA2/05
- Citation
- openlaw-fab8b693_eb30_4afd_a81f_0cbf76088932.pdf
- Court
- Court of Appeal
Ignorance of contractual or statutory obligations does not create a presumption that breaches cannot amount to serious misconduct; courts must apply the Oram test and evaluate whether a reasonable and fair employer could have dismissed. Disparity analysis requires three stages (establish disparity, ask whether an adequate explanation exists, and if not determine whether dismissal was nevertheless justified). Where disciplinary action is part of a coordinated, contemporaneous process subsequent cases may be taken into account. Applying those principles the Authority was entitled to find seriou…