E.T. Z (WR) EMPLOYMENT TRIBUNALS (SCOTLAND) Case No: 8000271/20245 Held in Inverness on 29, & October and December 2024 Employment Judge J M Hendry Members A H Perriam F Parr E William v L Rowland & Co (Retail) Ltd — 2025

The tribunal accepted that the claimant was protected under the Equality Act in respect of race and her genuinely held religious beliefs, but it rejected the direct discrimination case. It found no objective basis for saying the delay in training, the allocation of tasks, the instruction to clean, or criticism after minor errors showed treatment because of race or religion. The tribunal also accepted that the claimant's religious observance was known at work, including that she did not celebrate Christmas and kept Saturday as her Sabbath.

The harassment allegations were also dismissed. The tribunal treated the Christmas tree conversation and the reference to the claimant as a 'Daughter of Sarah' as isolated or awkward remarks that were not shown to be aimed at her in a way that violated her dignity or created a hostile environment. It similarly rejected the suggestion that questions about her religion, or the fact that staff knew of her beliefs, amounted to harassment. On the tribunal's findings, the incidents relied on were not enough to establish that the conduct was related to race or religion in the sense required by the Act.

Victimisation succeeded in relation to the events of 18 December 2023. The tribunal accepted that the claimant told Sarah Elliott that she was being treated differently because of the colour of her skin and asked to be moved or dismissed, which it treated as a protected act. It did not accept the respondent's account that she was merely sent home to calm down; instead, it found she was told to go home, was not asked back, and was then put through an AWOL and assumed-resignation process because she had raised race discrimination. The tribunal therefore held that the detriment and effective dismissal were caused by victimisation.

On remedy, the tribunal awarded £7,500 for injury to feelings, placing the case in the lower Vento band, together with £644 interest to 14 January 2025. It also awarded £1,387 for lost wages with £70.22 interest, and £51.98 for 5.25 hours of accrued but unpaid holiday pay. It made no separate notice award, stating that the one week's notice value was included in the wage-loss award.