Telling tales out of school: balancing public authority employees’ duties of confidentiality with their right to freedom of expression – Employment Law Blog

“A dinner lady told a child’s parents that their daughter had been tied to a fence and whipped with a skipping rope by some other pupils, repeated the same to the press and then was dismissed for breach of confidentiality and acting in a manner likely to bring the school into disrepute. An employment tribunal found the dismissal procedurally unfair but dismissed her whistleblowing claim and reduced her compensation for unfair dismissal on the grounds of Polkey and for contributory fault. The tribunal did not, however, determine the question of whether the claimant could lawfully be disciplined for ‘telling tales out of school’ (as it put it).”

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Employment Law Blog, 27th February 2013

Source: www.employment11kbw.com