Discrimination on grounds of race along with unfair dismissal

Introduction

This case is a powerful example of out and out racism and its human cost!

The Claimant was a young woman of 21 years employed as an Administrative Officer for a designer retail in Central London. She was a single mother of twins aged 3. She was Afro-Caribbean. She was a financially independent woman who did not need to work.

The Claimant’s supervisor was the subject of frequent complaints relating to what were perceived by the Claimant, and her colleagues, as racist behaviour. The Respondent, however, invariably dismissed the complaints as mere banter notwithstanding her apparently open belief that all black women lived on state benefits and only got pregnant in order advance up the waiting list for council accommodation!

When the Claimant became pregnant again her supervisor, having told her (infront of her colleagues) that she would not be getting maternity pay, then manufactured an allegation of theft thereby justifying her dismissal for gross misconduct.

The human cost of this appalling behaviour was that the Claimant miscarried.

Case summary

Not only did the Respondent not concede their own lamentable conduct, they mounted a robust defence involving elaborate details with regards to appraisals and targets that the Claimant had allegedly not achieved. Superficially, this appeared to be persuasive but for the fact that the reason for dismissal had nothing to do with the Claimant’s capability.

The Respondent made a submission to the Tribunal asking for the Claimant’s claim to be struck our and seeking costs against the Claimant. The submission failed.

When giving her evidence, the Claimant frequently broke down in tears.

Many of the Claimant’s colleagues gave evidence with respect to the racist behaviour of the Claimant’s supervisor.

When the Supervisor was requested to provide evidence to corroborate her allegation of theft against the Claimant, the best she could do was to state that it was her reasonable belief that it was the Claimant who was responsible for the supposed theft.

The alleged theft involved the use of a staff discount. The supervisor alleged that the Claimant had purchased boots from the store at a discounted price however when she returned the boots she received an additional £2.50 more than she had actually paid. In the opinion of the supervisor, this alleged theft of £2.50 amounted to gross misconduct thereby justifying the summarily dismissal of the Claimant.

A careful cross examination of the supervisor revealed, however, that there has been no theft at all. The Claimant’s discount card showed that the sum of £2.50 had been deducted from the card not added to it.

Despite the demonstrably false allegation of theft, the Respondent submitted that the supervisor had relied upon a reasonable belief as a result of which the Tribunal should not decide in favour of the Claimant.

The Tribunal’s decision

The Tribunal did not accept any of the arguments put forward by the Respondent. Instead, the Tribunal found the Claimant has been unfairly dismissed and that she was the subject of racial discrimination.

The Claimant’s compensatory award was £10,800.00.

She was awarded £20,000.00 for injury to feeling, and £350.00 for loss of statutory rights.

Had the total award not been capped at £30,000.00, she would have been awarded £31,150.00.