In person For the v Mr Potterton and 1 other — 2021

The tribunal heard a preliminary hearing on whether the claimant's discrimination complaints were out of time. It recorded at the outset that the race and sex discrimination claims were dismissed for want of jurisdiction because they had been filed out of time and it was not just and equitable to extend time. The claimant had ended her employment with P on 12 March 2015 and presented the claim on 16 March 2020, almost five years later.

The tribunal divided the case into complaints arising during employment and complaints arising from the reference provided by Mr D. The employment-period complaints included the comment that EU nationals were taking jobs from locals, issues about driving and commuting, alleged failures to make reasonable adjustments, and complaints about pay, holiday pay and sick pay. The tribunal held that these matters were known to the claimant while she was employed, that there was no continuing act, and that the claimant's health and later disclosure material did not justify extending time.

The reference complaints concerned the standard reference provided in 2015, which referred to the claimant's sickness absences and led to an occupational health appointment before she was offered the new job, which she accepted. Mr D said he would have taken the sickness information from human resources, and the tribunal accepted that the misspelling of 'fare' was a typographical error. It found the reference allegations, including the suggestion of victimisation and disability-related discrimination, to be weak; it also noted that the claimant had already known about the sickness information in 2015 and filed the claim before receiving the June 2020 information she had sought. The tribunal therefore refused to extend time for the reference-based complaints and no remedy was awarded.