Miss H Kinsey v Scrivens Ltd — 2021

Miss H Kinsey brought claims arising from her dismissal by Scrivens Ltd on 29 July 2020. An age discrimination claim had been withdrawn before the final hearing. The tribunal accepted that she was disabled by fibromyalgia, and during the hearing the respondent also conceded disability arising from anxiety and stress. The holiday pay issue was resolved by consent, and the tribunal ordered payment of £523.30 gross for accrued annual leave.

On the disability discrimination claim, the tribunal found that the respondent’s redundancy process did not take account of the claimant’s sickness absence or her part-time hours when deciding who would be appointed to the continuing Beeston and Hunslet roles. It accepted that all affected employees were interviewed for the ongoing posts after the branch restructure, and that the claimant was not put at a disadvantage because of something arising in consequence of disability. The claim under section 15 Equality Act 2010 was therefore dismissed.

On unfair dismissal, the tribunal accepted that the reason for dismissal was redundancy within section 139 ERA 1996, following the closure of Headingley and the restructure of the Leeds branches into a cluster. Although it criticised aspects of the consultation process, including the short timescale and the absence of collective consultation, it concluded that the interview-based selection method was a reasonable response for a complex sales advisor role and that the dismissal fell within the range of reasonable responses under section 98(4) ERA 1996. The unfair dismissal claim was dismissed.