Employment tribunal cases in the news – 02.03.2015 to 08.03.2015

redmans-blog-newsIn the latest of our series of posts on employment tribunal cases in the news, we take a look at ten employment tribunal cases that made the news between 2 March 2015 and 8 March 2015

  1. Amputee security guard wins damages from Ministry of Defence owned company for unfair dismissal – A one-armed security guard has won damages for unfair dismissal after a tribunal ruled he suffered discrimination while working for a defence firm. Andrew Holmes was dismissed from his job at Qinetiq in April after 18 years with the company (Wales Online)
  2. Radio exec who claimed boss liked recruits with ‘big boobs and blonde hair’ loses sexual harassment case – A radio station exec who claimed her boss asked for new recruits to have ‘big boobs and blonde hair’ like her today lost her case for sexual harassment and unfair dismissal. Dawn Carney, 37, told an employment tribunal that John Clayton’s ‘sexist’ behaviour was so bad that she changed her hair colour from blonde to brunette (The Mirror)
  3. Banker sues Goldman Sachs claiming she was ‘victimised for getting pregnant’ – A top Goldman Sachs banker is suing the firm and three of her bosses, claiming that she was denied millions of pounds in bonuses after she became pregnant. Sonia Pereiro Mendez was said in a tribunal to have been “publicly mocked” simply for being a woman – a situation that worsened after she revealed she was expecting a baby, resulting in “gratuitous and implicitly derogatory references to her childcare arrangements” (The Independent)
  4. Witnessing line manager’s recreation of scene from film Ghost at office party was not sexual harassment – The employment tribunal in this case had the unusual task of deciding whether or not a female employee was sexually harassed when she witnessed her male line manager and another man re-enacting a scene from the film Ghost at an office party (XpertHR)
  5. Teacher faces huge legal bill after losing employment tribunal battle – A Dudley teacher faces a £100,000 legal bill after losing a race and sex discrimination battle against the school where he works. Damieon Herry, who claimed one student at Hillcrest Secondary taunted him with a classroom Nazi salute, has been embroiled in a three-year employment tribunal with school bosses, Dudley Council (The Birmingham Mail)
  6. Croydon firm’s safety failings led to worker’s multiple injuries – A Surrey-based cleaning firm has been prosecuted for safety failings after an employee suffered life-changing injuries when he plunged six metres through a fragile rooflight (HSE)
  7. Broadcasting giant criticised over sacking of worker in racism row – A broadcasting giant has been criticised for taking the “customer is always right” mantra to the extreme after sacking a worker when a customer falsely accused him of being racist. Sky dismissed call centre adviser Steven Ritchie in October 2013 after a caller claimed he had made racist comments (Herald Scotland)
  8. Dow Jones worker ‘made to dress as Santa’ wins unfair dismissal case – A middle-aged accountant who said he was forced to dress up as Father Christmas and branded an “old buffer” has won his claim for unfair dismissal. Dow Jones accounts manager James McClellan told an employment tribunal he was sidelined and forced out of his payroll job at the publishing giant (BBC)
  9. Gay swimming instructor ‘was called a “paedo” by his manager and ordered to get changed in a disabled toilet on his own’ – A gay swimming instructor was called a ‘paedo’ by his manager ordered to get changed in a disabled toilet away from others, a tribunal heard today. Paul Britton claims he was referred to as a ‘f****t’ and a ‘gayboy’ and was told he should not be teaching young children, during a campaign of abuse by leisure centre colleagues (The Daily Mail)
  10. Science technician at top boys’ school claims she was told ‘women should stay in the kitchen’ – A female science technician at prestigious boys’ school was subjected to abuse by pupils and told “women should stay in the kitchen”, a tribunal has heard. Hannah Miller, 38, claims that she had doors slammed in her face, pupils shouted abuse at her and she was paid less than her male colleagues whilst work at Tonbridge School from January 2005 to June 2014 (The Telegraph)