EMPLOYMENT TRIBUNALS (SCOTLAND) Case No: 4104710/2020 Hearing Held by Cloud Video Platform (CVP) on and March 2022 Employment Judge - A Strain Members – W Canning and L Hutchison Ms K Edwards v JD Sports Fashion plc — 2022

The claimant was employed as a sales assistant and had the protected characteristic of disability, which the respondent knew or ought reasonably to have known about. She brought claims arising from incidents in February and March 2020, the handling of grievances, payroll issues during furlough, and her resignation on 3 August 2020.

The tribunal found that the conduct and comments relied on for the disability discrimination claims were work-related management action. It accepted that some comments could have been better worded, but found no prima facie case of direct disability discrimination and, in any event, accepted the respondent's non-discriminatory explanation. It also found that the alleged treatment was not unfavourable treatment arising from disability, was not reasonably harassment related to disability, and that payroll errors were not because the claimant had lodged grievances.

On breach of contract and constructive dismissal, the tribunal found that the alleged Equality Act breaches and comments in the grievance investigation did not breach the implied term of mutual trust and confidence. It found that wage errors in April, May and July 2020 were relatively minor at the point of resignation, that the July pay query was still being looked at, and that they did not amount to a fundamental breach. The constructive dismissal and pay claims were dismissed, although the tribunal described the delay in resolving pay queries as poor practice and unreasonable.