HR Glossary > Summary Dismissal

Summary Dismissal

What is Summary Dismissal?

Summary dismissal is a scenario wherein an employee is immediately terminated from work due to behavioral misconduct. Under such circumstances, the employee can be terminated without any notice period or notice of payment in lieu. However, the employer must outline the specific reason for summary dismissal in the employee contracts. The employee can question the company’s unreasonable termination if it's not specified.

For example,

One of the employees often misbehaved with his coworkers.
Management gave warnings several times.
One day during the working hours, he was found consuming alcohol and even possed others to drink it.
Senior managers and HR decided to terminate him immediately.
The employee had to face summary dismissal.

Frequently Asked Questions

What are the valid reasons for summary dismissal?

The valid reasons for summary dismissal are:

Attending workplaces while under the influence of different substances
For causing damage to company assets
Theft, being dishonest, or stealing sensitive company data
Substantial in-subordination
Performing favorable acts and partiality
Damaging the reputation of a company or the employer
Disregard towards security

When is summary dismissal not valid?

Summary misconduct should not be conducted if it is not under any malpractice. An employer cannot conduct summary dismissal if the employee is under the following behavior;

Regularly being late to work
Absence at work is often
Disturbing personal appearance
Not Performing up to the mark

What are the risks caused by summary dismissal?

Summary dismissal may harm the data security of both the employees and the employers. It may also risk the sensitive data of the company. The claim for the wrongful dismissal may be filed against the employer in some scenarios.