Miss S.A. Parminter Respondent Evolve Child Care Ltd v Respondent — 2023

The claimant, Miss S.A. Parminter, worked for Evolve Child Care Ltd as a residential support worker from 3 June 2017 until she resigned on 29 April 2022. Her claims were for constructive unfair dismissal and harassment related to age arising out of events around a handover on 29 March 2022 and subsequent dealings with her manager, Dan Walker.

On the constructive dismissal claim, the tribunal accepted that there had been friction between the claimant and her colleague Amy Morton, but it found that the respondent's response did not amount to a repudiatory breach of the implied term of trust and confidence. It held that Mr Walker's refusal to let the claimant choose not to be rostered with Ms Morton, while inflexible, was not a fundamental breach; that he did in fact try to arrange mediation; and that he investigated the incident of 29 March 2022 while keeping the claimant informed. The tribunal found that the claimant resigned because she did not want to work alongside Ms Morton, rather than because of any breach by the respondent.

On the age harassment claim, the tribunal rejected the claimant's account that Amy Morton said she had Alzheimer's during the handover. It found that the only comment about Alzheimer's came from Sarah Schock, who said she had forgotten her way to work, and that the claimant heard the word and attributed it to Ms Morton because of her perception of earlier friction. As the factual allegation against Ms Morton was not made out, the tribunal dismissed the harassment claim and said the remaining questions under s.26 Equality Act 2010 did not arise.

No remedy arose because both claims were dismissed. The judgment records no award for basic award, compensatory award, injury to feelings, interest, or total compensation.