The WRC found that Bidvest Noonan Services Group Limited fairly dismissed Israr Ahmed after he took 10 bottles of hand sanitiser from a client site during the early Covid-19 pandemic. The decision, dated 22 September 2021, also found the company was entitled to dismiss him without notice for misconduct.
Ahmed said he took the sanitiser because he feared for his family’s safety and argued dismissal was disproportionate after 11 years without disciplinary issues. He returned seven bottles. The adjudicator found that Ahmed’s role as a security officer involved protecting the client’s property and that taking the bottles breached the trust placed in him.
The adjudicator also found Ahmed had been informed of the allegations, offered representation and access to CCTV, and given an appeal. Both the unfair dismissal complaint and the minimum notice complaint were not well founded.