Ms F Jameel v British Medical Association — 2024

At a public preliminary hearing on 25 and 26 September 2024, Employment Judge Joffe considered whether Ms F Jameel was an employee or worker for the purposes of section 230 of the Employment Rights Act 1996 and section 83 of the Equality Act 2010. The respondent's separate application in relation to privilege was withdrawn, and the tribunal did not determine the trade union resolution-process point because no agreed list of issues identifying the alleged excluded matters was before it.

The tribunal held that Ms Jameel was an employee at the relevant time for both statutes. It accepted that her work had begun with the 2017 executive-team appointment process and later continued under a 2019 consultancy agreement that described her as a contractor, but it said the true relationship had to be assessed by reference to the reality rather than the label used in the written agreement. The tribunal relied on the requirement for personal service, the meeting-driven working pattern, payment through PAYE, annual leave and sick pay, maternity and parental leave provisions, compliance with BMA policies, occupational health referrals, and the respondent's ability to suspend or terminate the engagement for gross misconduct.

The tribunal rejected the respondent's case that the claimant was simply an independent office holder who was not subject to the necessary degree of control. It found that there was a sufficient framework of control to bring the relationship into the employment sphere, and it was not persuaded by the internal material suggesting that the chair and executive-team role needed to be independent of the BMA in the way the respondent contended. The tribunal did not decide whether there had been a TUPE transfer, did not determine the nature of any dismissal, and did not reach the merits of the unfair dismissal, discrimination, or breach of contract claims, which were left for the full merits hearing.