Polkey factor

[Proinnsias]

What should I concentrate on to persuade an Industrial Tribunal that the Polkey factor applied to the full?

[buildersmate]

Goodness, that is an incredibly technical question. Are you representing yourself as the employee or from the employer's viewpoint? And you are really going to have to outline the key facts (as you see them) to get any sort of reasoned answer (out of me, anyway)

[brachiopod]

I would hazard that you are an employer.

Without sounding obvious - concentrate on the fact that you had adequate grounds for dismissal in the first place!! Even if it is found that your diciplinary procedures were incorrect, you will limit your liabilities if it is believed the employee committed an act of gross misconduct in the first instance.

If you are an employee going to tribunal - don't mention the Polkey factor at all !!!!

[Whickerman]

Can i be the first to recommend starting with your left leg in, then your left leg out...

[buildersmate]

Good answer, Brachio, but because that is pretty high-level and hence generic to any Polkey issue, I assume the questioner wants more than this.

[Proinnsias]

Thank you all for your thoughts.
As an employer I had to make an employee redundant. (too many staff for turnover).
I followed what I believe to be a proper procedure, but I made 2 errors
1. I did not give him his full statutory notice, and
2. I overlooked to tell him that he had a right to an appeal
against the decision to make him redundant.
On the second count the redundancy (dismissal) will be automatically unfair, but I would wish to argue that even if a proper procedure had been followed the outcome would have been the same.