Employment Appeal Tribunal (EAT) rulings on what kinds of measures are capable of amounting to repudiatory conduct in the context of a constructive unfair dismissal claim are always instructive.

Making a constructive dismissal case is a big step for any employee, and so any guidance on whether or not their claim is likely to succeed is very useful.

In the recent case of Mr Bedford v Pilgrims Group Ltd, the EAT considered whether non-payment of four days holiday amounted to a repudiatory breach of contract. Ultimately, they found against the claimant and ruled that he had not been constructively dismissed.

During the case, the EAT considered the guidance already established in Western Excavating Ltd v Sharp, London Borough of Waltham Forest v Omilaju in relation to the “last straw” doctrine, and also the case of Malik in relation to the implied term of trust and confidence.

They determined that, while the failure to pay the four day’s holiday had been a breach of contract, it had only been a minor breach, and so the employee was not entitled to treat the contract as repudiated.

They also ruled that the breakdown of the employment relationship had been due to the attitude of the claimant rather than the respondent.

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