ETZ 4(WR) IN THE EMPLOYMENT TRIBUNAL (SCOTLAND) AT EDINBURGH Judgment of the Employment Tribunal in Case No: 4100900/2020 (V) Issued Following Open Preliminary Hearing Held at Edinburgh on th November 2020, th and th February 2021 Held via the Cloud Based Video Platform (CVP)10 Employment Judge J G d’Inverno Mr G Ross v Represented by:- Mr S Smith, Solicitor Glasgow City Council — 2020

The hearing was limited to jurisdiction. Mr Ross's claims for unfair dismissal, breach of contract, and disability discrimination described as a section 26 harassment complaint were presented on 11 February 2020 after his summary dismissal on 23 January 2019. The tribunal also recorded that an earlier ET1 in January 2019 had been rejected for want of necessary information.

The decisive issue was whether the claimant knew, or ought reasonably to have known, about the tribunal time limits. The tribunal preferred Geraldine Agbor's evidence that around 31 January or 1 February 2019 she told him the GMB would not fund or support external tribunal proceedings, that he should urgently contact a solicitor, that a 90-day time limit applied, and that she gave him contact details for three firms. It also found that he had continuing access to union assistance, internet access, and other potential legal advice during the limitation period.

Rejecting the claimant's evidence that he was reasonably ignorant of the time limits, the tribunal found his ignorance was not reasonable and that he had not shown it was not reasonably practicable to present the ERA complaints in time. It further held that it was not just and equitable to extend time for the Equality Act complaint. All claims were therefore dismissed for want of jurisdiction, and no monetary award was made.