It is disappointing to see how many cases arise from a misunderstanding of this concept. Summary dismissal, dismissal without paying the employee’s notice period, is usually justified by reference to the employee’s commission of gross misconduct. That is where problems for the employer generally begin. It is not sufficient to class any misconduct as gross misconduct. The concept involves very serious misconduct such as theft, assault, sexual assault, deliberate destruction of the employer’s property or something of similar gravity. What amounts to gross misconduct will depend on the facts of the case but the act will need to be something that undermines the employment contract. Merely defining something as “gross misconduct” in the employment contract does not make it so.
