Different Types of Dismissal Terminating employees is a tricky issue and it can invite legal implications to both the company

and employees. It is of paramount that HR must handle the termination of employee with great care and follow proper procedures for termination to avoid unnecessary hassle. Broadly, the dismissal can be categorized into 4 types: 1) Summary Dismissal The employer has the legal rights to terminate an employee without notice if the employee is found to have repudiated the contract of employment. It is when the employees act or conduct seriously breaches the essential conditions of contract and that he/she is demonstrating an intention not to be bound by the contract. The conduct of an employee that gives substantive ground for employer to exercise summary dismissal are serious misconduct, disobedience of employers lawful and reasonable directions, alcohol intoxication during work, neglect of duties, bribery, criminal behaviours in connection with employment such as stealing, absenteeism without notice for a period longer than the law permits. Terminating employee based on summary dismissal is a very drastic measure and it is done without giving notice of dismissal to the employee concerned. It creates great effects on those are dismissed as it recorded the bad conduct of the employee that affect the future employability of the employee. Therefore, HR needs to exercise great care when dealing with summary dismissal as the law restricts the employers right to summarily dismiss an employee on the ground that the employees is in direct and serious breach of the employees obligations. It is therefore advisable that HR follow a proper procedure for dismissal to determine the valid reason for dismissal. Otherwise the employee may argue that the dismissal is harsh, unfair and unreasonable and the legal implications are troublesome to the company. The law imposes on employer to have a fair procedure or process for the employee accused of certain conduct to have an opportunity to respond to the allegation. 2) Notice of Dismissal or Payment in Lieu of Notice This type of dismissal is based on the express or implied term of the employment contract where one party to the contract, either employer or employee, wishes to bring the contract to an end by giving notice to the other party. The requisite notice period is normally spelt out in the employment contract or as determined by the legislation through award. The issue here is the notice period and if the period is not explicitly specified in the employment contract, other factors such as seniority of the position, the employees age or the prospect of obtaining alternative employment will need to be considered to decide on the reasonableness of period of notice. Under Notice of Dismissal, any reasons can be used to terminate the contract but the law places more stringent requirements on the employer for unfair dismissal. Firstly, the employer must give sufficient

notice to the employee of the impending termination or the employer can make compensation in lieu of notice. Furthermore, the employer must notify the employee of the decision to terminate employment with reasons in writing. The intention is to ensure clarity and avoid confusion, and to avoid that the termination is done on unfair ground. 3) Redundancy Dismissal As a result of economic situation i.e. economic downturn or commercial decision i.e. merging or acquisition, the employer may find that certain position may no longer be required and therefore the employee that fills the position is terminated. It is done solely due to commercial or economic considerations and not the fault of the employee. Thus, redundancy refers to the position and not the individual employee. In this case, the respective rights of employer and employee are governed by law such as compensation i.e. severance pay. The argument is always around how to ascertain that a position is redundant and why cannt the said employee be asked to fill other role within the company. 4) Constructive Dismissal When an employee resigns because the employer acts in a manner where it indicates the employer no longer wants to be bound by the terms and conditions of the employment, the said employee is considered to have been dismissed by the employer. In other words, the employee was forced to resign and not under their own initiative. An example such as employer unilaterally varies the terms of employment contract or forcing the employee to accept changes in remuneration, duties or work location. Demotion sometimes can be construed as constructive dismissal because employment contract does not include express provision for employer to reclassify a position freely. Under constructive dismissal, the employee has the same rights as if they have been dismissed and refer the case to labour court for compensation.