Kuzel v Roche Products Ltd [2007] All ER (D) 32 (Mar) (EAT)
If an employee claims he was unfairly dismissed for whistle-blowing, the proper approach is to consider:
(i) whether the employee has shown that there was a real issue about whether the reason advanced by the employer was not the true reason for the dismissal by advancing a case under s 103A of the Employment Rights Act 1996;
(ii) if so, have the employers proved their reason for dismissal;
(iii) if not, have the employers disproved the s 103A reason advanced by the employee;
(iv) if not, the dismissal was for the s 103A reason. The employers’ failure to prove the reason relied on does not automatically result in a finding of unfair dismissal under section 103A. However, rejection of the employers’ reason, coupled with the claimant having raised a prima facie case, entitles the tribunal to infer that the s 103A reason was the true one.
However, it remains open to the employers to satisfy the tribunal that the making of protected disclosures was not
