Mr S Wong v Benugo Ltd — 2022

Ms Adjei-Agyekum was employed part-time by Benugo Ltd from 16 April 2022 to 13 June 2023, when she resigned. Her first ET1, presented on 31 January 2023, alleged age, race and disability discrimination and also included a claim described as breach of employers statutory duty of care based on negligence. Her second ET1, presented on 30 May 2023, alleged victimisation and claims under the Part-Time Workers Regulations, and also referred to the Data Protection Act and breach of the ACAS Code.

The respondent applied on 10 October 2023 for all claims to be struck out under rule 37(1)(a), (b), (c) and (e). At the hearing on 23 January 2024 the claimant attended but turned off her camera because of anxiety, then logged out after the respondent's witness had been sworn and took no further part. The tribunal relied on a witness statement from Sylwia Demianiuk, which was unchallenged in oral evidence.

The tribunal found that the claimant had sent numerous racist, abusive, foul and threatening messages and voice notes to respondent staff between May and October 2023, and that this conduct was scandalous, vexatious and unreasonable. It accepted Ms Demianiuk's evidence that the messages caused concern about further targeting if she gave evidence, and held that the claimant's conduct had interfered with the respondent's ability to defend the proceedings without fear, harassment or gratuitous abuse. The tribunal cited Grainford Care Homes Ltd v Tippe and Roe and concluded that, applying rule 37(1)(a), (b) and (e) and the overriding objective, all claims in both case numbers should be struck out; it also noted that the disability discrimination claim would in any event be struck out because the claimant had not complied with the order to produce an impact statement.