As Covid related cases make their way through the tribunal system, this is an interesting case where an employee refused to attend work during the first lockdown because he had vulnerable children who could become very ill if they caught Covid. He was dismissed and claimed he had been automatically dismissed because he had exercised his right not to return to the workplace to protect himself from circumstances of danger, which he had reasonably believed were serious and imminent.
The EAT held that he did not reasonably believe that there were circumstances of danger which were serious and imminent, either at work or at large. His argument was not supported by his actions, such as not wearing a facemask, leaving his home during self-isolation and working in a pub during lockdown!
Rodgers v. Leeds Laser Cutting Limited
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