This case involved a claim of constructive dismissal. The complainant alleged that she had resigned from the respondent company following an allegedly unfair bullying and harassment disciplinary procedure by the respondent.

The complainant argued her resignation met the criteria set down in the Act i.e. termination of the contract of employment by her was due to her employer’s conduct and was reasonable in the circumstances.

In summary, the complainant had been informed that her till had been short at the end of one of her shifts and that a disciplinary meeting would take place. Before the scheduled disciplinary meeting the complainant was, without notice, called into the manager's office and shown CCTV footage of mistakes she had made, for example, not scanning items at the till. The manager said he was disgusted and disappointed in her.

The disciplinary meeting was then held as scheduled and despite the complainant's request for the assistant manager to accompany her to the meeting it was not facilitated as he was on his break. Minutes of the meeting were taken but the complainant disputes the content therein.

The complainant was then presented with a letter containing a verbal warning. The complainant contended that given the lack of evidence of wrongdoing it was impossible for her to defend her position or adequately respond to the allegations made. She hand-delivered a written appeal of her verbal warning to the store manager who then allegedly proceeded to read it out in front of the assistant store manager. She was then called to the manager's office for a meeting and informed that she had to address her appeal to the HR department. She was also informed that her till was short €20 two days beforehand, but no evidence of same was furnished to her.

As a result the complainant suffered a panic attack and claimed that she was unable to cope with the repeated allegations of wrongdoing. She was traumatised by the manner in which the respondent dealt with the situation and their failure to adhere to proper procedures. She was subsequently certified unfit to work due to stress and her GP advised that if she were to return to work her medical condition may return. The respondent claimed at no stage did the complainant lodge a grievance regarding the alleged behaviour.

The Court held no evidence was presented to suggest that there was an undermining of the relationship of trust and confidence as both parties were actively engaged in dealing with the appeal of the verbal warning. In all the circumstances, the Court found that the reasons cited for the resignation did not constitute a fundamental breach going to the root of the contract and stated that the complainant's failure to make a complaint regarding her treatment was fatal to her claim of constructive dismissal.
http://www.workplacerelations.ie/en/Cases/2018/July/UDD1843.html