Ms K L Coleman v Represented by: Mr J McVeigh - Trade Union Representative Thermoelectric Conversion Systems Ltd — 2026

The claimant worked for Thermoelectric Conversion Systems Ltd from 12 September 2022 until her resignation on 9 June 2025 as a finance administrator. The tribunal found that staff had been asked to download WhatsApp to work computers, and that on or around 31 May 2025 Dr Siviter accessed the claimant's machine to look for a work spreadsheet, saw a personal WhatsApp chat and read around 30 pages of personal messages. The respondent then suspended the claimant on 3 June and sent a broadly framed disciplinary allegation letter describing the matters as gross misconduct.

The claimant repeatedly asked for proper particulars and said she would be accompanied by Mr McVeigh, a trade union representative and practising solicitor. The tribunal found the respondent had told her he could only support her and not speak on her behalf, which was wrong, and on 9 June 2025 Professor Knox and Dr Buckle refused to let him proceed when he attended with a union card, driving licence and an email confirming the relevant training. The hearing did not proceed.

On the first three alleged breaches of the implied term of trust and confidence, the tribunal accepted that the respondent's conduct in reading and relying on the private WhatsApp material was unreasonable and without justification, but it held it could not make a finding that the conduct was unlawful as pleaded. Those acts were therefore not established on the basis advanced. The fourth act, concerning the refusal to allow the claimant a fair hearing with her chosen companion, was established.

Applying Western Excavating, Malik, the last straw principles in Omilaju and Kaur, and the statutory right to be accompanied under section 10 of the Employment Relations Act 1999, the tribunal found the respondent's conduct, viewed objectively, destroyed or seriously damaged trust and confidence without reasonable or proper cause. It held the claimant resigned because of that fundamental breach and was constructively unfairly dismissed under section 95(1)(c) of the Employment Rights Act 1996.

The tribunal also held the respondent wrongfully dismissed the claimant by not paying notice pay. However, the notice sum had already been taken into account in the compensatory award, so no additional amount was payable. Remedy was agreed: a basic award of £1,230.76 and a compensatory award of £4,923.04 plus £500 for loss of statutory rights, with a 25% uplift of £1,355.76, making £6,778.80 in total compensatory compensation and £8,009.56 overall. The recoupment regulations did not apply.