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To what extent are employees obliged to disclose their full employment history on an application for employment? That is the question that was addressed in the recent case of Easton v Secretary of State for the Home Department (Border Force). The Claimant applied for a job with the Respondent (the Border Force). The application form included a free-text box for ‘Employment History’, where the Claimant listed only years of employment instead of a breakdown of his full employment history by job role.
This hid a three-month gap that occurred after the Claimant had been dismissed for gross misconduct from another Home Office role. The Claimant didn’t mention the dismissal or the gap in his employment history during interview. However, the Respondent discovered this after the Claimant started work, so launched a disciplinary investigation. The Respondent concluded that the Claimant was dishonest by omitting information and dismissed him for gross misconduct.
The Claimant brought claims before the employment tribunal (‘Tribunal’), which dismissed the Claimant’s claim for unfair dismissal, concluding that the dismissal was fair and was a reasonable response from the Respondent.
The Claimant appealed, arguing that he was being punished for failing to provide information that was not specifically requested within the application form, and the Tribunal did not put sufficient weight to that fact.
The Employment Appeal Tribunal (‘EAT’) dismissed the appeal, concluding that the Tribunal was free to conclude on the facts that the Respondent had reasonable grounds to believe the Claimant’s actions were dishonest by obscuring the fact and nature of his previous dismissal.
The EAT held that a reasonable applicant would understand that an ‘Employment History’ section required a full and transparent account, including providing information about any employment gaps.
To discuss any of the issues raised in this article, including concerns regarding applications for employment, please do not hesitate to contact Daniel Onafuwa, James Baker or another member of the Employment Team.
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