Case 1405639/2023 · Employment Tribunal
- IN PERSON FOR THE v Respondent — 2024
- Case reference
- 1405639/2023
- Decision date
- 21 June 2024
- Jurisdiction
- England & Wales
- Judge
- Employment Judge Cadney Dated
Parties
1 namedClaimant
- IN PERSON FOR THE
Respondent
- —
Key findings
Tribunal's reasoningThe claimant was employed from August 2009 until her dismissal on 31 August 2023 as a Members Accounts Manager. She was signed off sick from 22 May 2023 and was subsequently accused of working in a self-employed capacity (making dog collars and bandanas with her sister) while off sick. Following a process the tribunal recorded as procedurally flawed, including the absence of a disciplinary meeting and the refusal of an appeal, she was dismissed for gross misconduct on 31 August 2023. No response was entered by any respondent and no evidence was called on their behalf at the remedy hearing.
The tribunal upheld claims of unfair dismissal, wrongful dismissal (notice pay), direct disability discrimination, harassment related to disability, and failure to make reasonable adjustments. The unfair dismissal claim succeeded because the burden of proving a potentially fair reason lay on the respondent and no evidence was produced. For the discrimination claims, the tribunal found that the facts (the lengthy sickness absence, the nature of the allegations, the sharing of medical information, and the requirement to attend an in-person meeting on 5 July 2023) were sufficient to satisfy stage 1 of the Igen v Wong test and shift the burden of proof, which the respondents did not discharge. The claim regarding written particulars of employment did not succeed, as the contract had been supplied.
On remedy against R1, the tribunal awarded a basic award of £6,748, a compensatory award for loss of earnings of £1,277.44 (reduced from a 20-week claim to 8 weeks to avoid overlap with notice pay), £500 for loss of statutory rights, a 20% ACAS uplift of £355.48, and notice pay of £4,380, totalling £13,260.92. Jointly and severally against all three respondents, the tribunal made a single injury-to-feelings award (placed towards the lower end of the middle Vento band) of £15,000, increased by the 20% ACAS uplift to £18,000, plus interest of £1,149.13 calculated from 5 July 2023, totalling £19,149.13.
Claims and outcomes
6 findings recorded| Claim type | Issue or finding | Outcome | Protected characteristic | Award |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Unfair dismissal | Basic award £6,748 + compensatory loss of earnings £1,277.44 + loss of statutory rights £500 + ACAS 20% uplift £355.48. Awarded against R1 only. Succeeded in the absence of any response from the respondent. | Upheld | — | £8,881 |
| Wrongful dismissal | Notice pay of 12 x £365 = £4,380, against R1 only. Tribunal recorded the claim as 'Wrongful Dismissal / Notice Pay'. | Upheld | — | £4,380 |
| Disability discrimination | Direct disability discrimination (s.13 Equality Act 2010). Tribunal found the facts sufficient to satisfy stage 1 of the Igen v Wong test and, with no response from the respondents, the claim succeeded. Injury to feelings awarded as a single combined sum across the three discrimination claims. | Upheld | Disability | — |
| Harassment | Harassment related to disability (s.26 Equality Act 2010) arising from the alleged sharing of the claimant's medical information with third parties. Injury to feelings awarded as a single combined sum across the three discrimination claims. | Upheld | Disability | — |
| Disability discrimination | Failure to make reasonable adjustments (s.20 Equality Act 2010): PCP of requiring in-person attendance at meetings, with the proposed adjustment of remote or email meetings. Injury to feelings awarded as a single combined sum across the three discrimination claims. | Upheld | Disability | — |
Remedy
Monetary award- Total award
- £32,410
- across all upheld claims
- Basic award
- £6,748
- statutory, unfair dismissal
- Compensatory award
- £2,133
- compensatory remedy recorded
Legal tests applied
6 references- Igen v Wong
- s.13 Equality Act 2010
- s.20 Equality Act 2010
- s.26 Equality Act 2010
- Vento bands
- ACAS Code (uplift)
Official outcome judgment PDF
Gov.uk primary recordThe official judgment PDF on gov.uk contains the tribunal's outcome, reasoning, and any remedy details. Where this page does not yet show extracted outcomes for every claim, use the PDF as the authoritative source.
Published on gov.uk under the Open Government Licence v3.0.
How we got this data
Case essentials (reference, date, judge, venue, country, claim categories) are extracted from the structured metadata gov.uk publishes alongside each decision. Parties and monetary figures are extracted from the judgment PDF text. Key findings and per-claim outcomes require a second extraction pass that is not yet complete for this case — until then, the primary source linked above is the authoritative record. See full methodology.
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