Employment cases in the news – 19.10.2014 to 26.10.2014

redmans-blog-newsIn the latest of our series of posts on employment tribunal cases in the news this week, we take a look at ten employment cases that made the news between 19 October and 26 October 2014.

  1. Walsall family firm at war after brother escorted from premises – An historic Walsall family-run firm has been rocked by a bitter legal dispute pitting relatives against each other. David Williamson, his brother Matthew and cousin Christopher Williamson were directors of Walsall-based Joseph Dixon Tool Co Ltd, formed in 1843 (The Birmingham Mail)
  2. Asda faces mass legal action over equal pay for women – Asda, the UK’s second largest retailer, is facing a mass legal action by women who work in their stores. The women claim they are not paid the same as male workers in the distribution warehouses – despite their jobs being of “equivalent value” (BBC)
  3. Gillingham and chairman Paul Scally charged over ‘race victimisation’ – Gillingham and their chairman, Paul Scally, have been charged by the Football Association in relation to the dismissal of the striker Mark McCammon following an alleged “act of race victimisation” (The Guardian)
  4. Caretaker sues Historic Scotland after island dream job turns sour – A worker who fought off hundreds of applicants from around the world to land his dream job as caretaker of an uninhabited island has been given the go-ahead to sue his employers for constructive dismissal. Edward Glenwright resigned from his post as custodian of ­idyllic Inchcolm Island earlier this year after raising fraud allegations against a ferry operator (Herald Scotland)
  5. Employment Tribunal backs SBC over sacking – Scottish Borders Council was justified in sacking a £50,000-a-year senior manager who used local authority equipment to operate a sideline as an agent for a sportswear firm. That is the conclusion of an employment tribunal which rejected an application from Hugh Kinsella who claimed he had been unfairly dismissed (The Southern Reporter)
  6. Binman loses claim for ‘unfair dismissal’ – A binman has lost his claim for “unfair dismissal” from the job he carried out for 38 years. Employment tribunal chairman Michael Zuke ruled that Brighton and Hove City Council took the “reasonable response of a responsible employer” when they dismissed Des Jones after allegations of homophobic comments towards a colleague (The Argus)
  7. Former charity worker to leave Hartlepool after ‘losing fight’ for unpaid wages – A woman who was awarded thousands of pounds in compensation following a legal battle with town charity has given up ever getting her cash and is set to leave the town. Lynda Gooding says she has simply “lost the fight” to get her money, and is so fed up with life in Hartlepool that she has put her house on the market
  8. Hotdog and wine gums dispute gets fired Cineworld worker €20,000 – A former employee of Cineworld Cinemas in Dublin has been awarded €20,000 for an unfair dismissal involving a row over a hotdog and some wine gums. Carl Meade, a multi-functional operator with the cinema group for three years, lost his job after he was observed on CCTV receiving one large hotdog and a packet of wine gums (The Journal.ie)
  9. Council boss loses fight on sacking – A council boss who was sacked for selling sportswear on the side while he was at work has lost his case for unfair dismissal. Hugh Kinsella, a risk, wellbeing and safety manager with Scottish Borders Council, had been selling the sporting goods – including football and rugby strips – for almost nine years at times when he was supposed to be carrying out his council duties (Herald Scotland)
  10. Binman who is unable to read safety warnings wins pay-out – A refuse collector who was discriminated against because he cannot read has been awarded almost £17,000 by an employment tribunal. Stephen McEwan successfully sued bosses at Biffa Waste Management for disability discrimination and unfair dismissal after they failed to take account of his dyslexia (Herald Scotland)