Mr M Harris, Counsel For the v Respondent — 2020

This was a reserved judgment on a preliminary issue in the claimant's equal pay case against C Hoare & Co. The tribunal held that the equal pay claim was in time. The parties agreed that the case was neither a concealment case nor an incapacity case, so the issue was whether it was a standard case or, alternatively, a stable work case under sections 129 to 130 of the Equality Act 2010.

The tribunal found that the claimant's employment had not ended when she left her role as Head of Section E or when she later moved from the temporary Interim Head of Customer Support role into the Senior Relationship Manager role. There was no explicit dismissal or termination, no formal redundancy risk, and no new written contract when her roles changed. The evidence showed a transition in roles rather than termination and re-engagement, and the respondent's own notes and letters showed an intention to keep her in employment, including on the same pay.

On that basis, the tribunal held this was a standard case and that the claimant remained employed on the same contract she had held in her Head of Section E role. It also said that, if that were wrong, the claim would still be in time as a stable work case. In the alternative analysis, the tribunal held that the differences between Head of Section E, Interim Head of Customer Support and SRM were not fundamental, radical or significant enough to end the stable working relationship. It relied on the continuity of the claimant's customer portfolio, the gradual build-up of SRM duties, and the respondent's approach of moving her into alternative roles while keeping her employment continuous.