Where an employer has received a request from a former employee in relation to details of their employment and dismissal what are the obligations of an employer to respond where the request has not been made under a data access request? Where the query references the Unfair Dismissals legislation, I am aware that there is an obligation under section 14(4) to furnish particulars of the grounds for dismissal, what should a reply under this legislation contain?

Section 14 (4) of the Unfair Dismissals Acts 1977 to 2007 (the “Acts”) obliges employers to, if so requested “...furnish to the employee within 14 days of the request, particulars in writing of the grounds for the dismissal, but in determining for the purposes of [the]Act whether the dismissal was unfair there may be taken into account any other grounds which are substantial grounds and which would have justified the dismissal.”

This means that employers are obliged to provide the employee with the principle grounds justifying his/her dismissal, however, the employer will not be precluded from relying on grounds of dismissal which are subsequently raised in the context of a future unfair