Appeal No.	 EAT/183/98

EMPLOYMENT APPEAL TRIBUNAL
58 VICTORIA EMBANKMENT, LONDON EC4Y 0DS

	At the Tribunal
	On 9 November 1998

Before
 THE HONOURABLE MR JUSTICE LINDSAY
MR J R CROSBY
MR N D WILLIS

MR V GILL	APPELLANT

WHITBREAD PLC 	RESPONDENTS

Transcript of Proceedings

JUDGMENT

PRELIMINARY HEARING - EX PARTE

Revised

	APPEARANCES

For the Appellant	THE APPELLANT NEITHER PRESENT NOR REPRESENTED	

	MR JUSTICE LINDSAY:	We have before us a preliminary hearing. We think that this matter should go to a full hearing. We have difficulty in seeing how the Chairman below was able to hold that the grievance procedure was not part of the employee’s contract. We also have difficulty seeing why the Chairman held that a letter in the case was not a complaint under that grievance procedure. We do think that there is at least a possibility here of a material point of law, and therefore it should go to a full hearing. There should be a request to the Chairman to provide Notes of the submissions made to him and the evidence led before him which enabled him to determine that the relevant clause was not part of the employee’s contract, and similarly his Notes as to why it was that the letter of 19th December 1996 that was written did not form part of the grievance procedure. With those matters mentioned, we simply sent the matter to a full hearing.