Have you been asked by your employer to do work that is beyond your job scope? Ever considered if that is fair? And is that sufficient reason to resign and claim for constructive dismissal?

This article addresses these concerns.

What Is an Employee’s Job Description?

A job description is a written statement that describes the general duties and responsibilities that come with the job.

A job description should be attached with the recruitment advertisement so that those applying are fully aware of the responsibilities that come with the job. A job description can also be given to the candidate before he/she officially accepts the employment to achieve the same purpose.

Why Is It Important for Employees to Be Informed of Their Job Scope?

The case of Yeo Teck Seng (KL) Sdn. Bhd v Foong Seong Hor [2003] ILJU 6 demonstrates the importance of informing employees of their job scope.

In the case, the Court stated that although an employer has the discretion whether to inform the employee of his/her job scope in writing, there are more advantages to doing so than not.

This is because a job scope that is informed orally may be easily forgotten, be misunderstood, and when a situation arises as to whether a certain job is within the job scope of the employee (such as in the case), the company would be hard-pressed to prove that it is.

On the facts, the employer tried to argue that the job scope of the employee included sales, sourcing for new clients, and increasing client profile and client base, and that was informed to the employee orally.

However, as there was no written evidence, the Court found that the Company has not succeeded in establishing that the Claimant was told and was in fact aware that his job scope included those duties.

As such, if the Claimant did not know that those were within his job scope, he could not be faulted for not having performed them; his dismissal that was based on failing to perform those duties was, therefore, wrong and the Company has unfairly dismissed the employee.

Can My Employer Amend My Job Scope?

In the case of Yap Soo Hong v WRP Asia Pacific Sdn Bhd [2018] 4 ILJ 8, the employee was reassigned from the position of Accounts Executive to Senior Executive-Canteen/Hostel Operations.

A perusal of the transfer letter suggested that her job scope would be drastically different from her previous position of Accounts Executive; the employee had no prior experience with managing a canteen or a hostel as she had always only been in the payroll division. Further, there was also no evidence from the company that she has been progressively re-trained for that role.

In those circumstances, the Court was of the view that the drastic change in her job scope made it impossible for her to carry on work in the company and held that she was in fact constructively dismissed.

In another case of Damaso v PSI Peripheral Solutions Inc [2013] O.J. No. 5781 from Ontario, Canada, the employee was hired for the position of field service technician and computer technician, in which his duties and responsibilities were clearly stated during the time of hire.

However, over time, due to changes required for the business, the employer added towards the employee’s existing duties including IT administration but without additional financial compensation.

The Court that if an employee resigns due to being given excessive workload and work beyond his/her original job scope, the employee can be deemed to be constructively dismissed.

Changes Due to Technology

With the above being said, employees cannot confuse the change in job scope and the change in how a job is done.

In the case of Cresswell v Board of Inland Revenue [1984] 2 All ER 713, the revenue clerks were dissatisfied that they were ordered to start using a computerised record system instead of the old method of paper files.

Consequently, they went to Court to seek declarations, amongst others, that they were not bound by the order and that the defendants were in breach of their contracts of employment.

However, the High Court held that the job scope of the clerks did not change, but merely the way it was to be performed. The Court also stated that an employee is expected to adapt himself to new methods and techniques introduced in the course of his employment, even if there may be some loss of job satisfaction on the part of the employees concerned. The Court held that the defendants had not committed any act in breach of contract in refusing to allow the plaintiffs to continue working manually and in refusing to pay them as long as they refused to work the new computerised system.

Lessons to Be Learnt from The Cases Above 

There are several valuable lessons to be learned from the cases above, and all employers and employees should give due consideration to them.

They are as follows:

1. By putting the employee’s job scope in writing, it makes it clear for both employer and employee the precise duties and responsibilities of the employee. This makes it easier to gauge whether an employee is performing satisfactorily or not.
2. However, there may be situations where a job scope is best not put in writing; for example when the employee’s role may be too diverse to be listed, and when the employer wishes to retain some flexibility in instructing the employee.
3. As such, a well-drafted and legally reviewed job description may be the solution to this dilemma and may provide protection to all parties while not neglecting the realities at the workplace.
4. Whilst employers generally have the managerial prerogative to amend an employee’s job scope, such prerogative must be exercised reasonably and cautiously. Failure to do so may lead to unnecessary litigation, or worse, punishment from the Court.
5. Employers must be cautious when amending or expanding an employee’s job scope and ensure that the change does not constitute a breach of the fundamental terms of the employment.
6. Often, the solution is just open communication and honest negotiation. That would more likely lead to an amicable agreement between parties, as opposed to a unilateral amendment to an employee’s job scope which often leads to misunderstanding or resentment.
7. If time and cost permit, a conversation with the company’s lawyer beforehand may help avoid pitfalls and save the company lots of money in the future by avoiding litigation.

We hope that you found this article useful. If you have any related questions, feel free to contact me here.

Authored with the assistance of my able interns, Zhi Ying and Kai Ling.