Employers – Stamp Out Offensively Blokeish Behaviour or Pay the Price

When offensively blokeish behaviour in the workplace enters the realms of sexual harassment it is employers who are likely to carry the financial and reputational can. The point was powerfully made by a case concerning a female firefighter who was humiliated by male colleagues’ sexist…

Oct 31, 2023

The woman claimed that she and three firemen were inside a fire engine, awaiting delivery of a takeaway meal, when the men began making assessments of female passers-by, commenting on whether they would or would not have sex with them. Their words, she said, left her feeling uncomfortable, invisible, disregarded and neither respected nor valued as a female member of the team.

On another occasion, she alleged that, at the urging of one of the firemen, the fire engine took a ‘scenic route’ via a seafront area rather than taking the most direct route back to the fire station. The same fireman was said to have asked the team leader several times ‘what he could do with’ women they passed. She said that she felt intimidated and degraded by his remarks.

She later launched Employment Tribunal (ET) proceedings against her fire authority employer on the basis that it bore vicarious, or indirect, legal responsibility for the firemen’s conduct. Their comments, she asserted, amounted to harassment of a sexual nature contrary to Section 26(2) of the Equality Act 2010.

The firemen denied her allegations in their entirety. However, in upholding her claim, the ET preferred her evidence and found, on the balance of probabilities, that the incidents occurred in all material respects as she had described them. Given that finding, the authority conceded that the conduct complained of was of a sexual nature.

In finding that the firemen’s conduct was unwanted, the ET noted that the woman was not a prude. She felt, however, that their inappropriate, sexist and degrading commentary on other women had crossed the line. Their conduct had the effect of creating an intimidating, hostile, humiliating or offensive environment for her. If not agreed, the amount of her compensation would be assessed at a further hearing.

‘Long Covid’ Recognised as a Disability in Important Employment Ruling

Following recovery from the immediate effects of COVID-19, a substantial number of people have gone on to suffer from a phenomenon commonly known as ‘long Covid’. In an important ruling, an Employment Tribunal (ET) found that the condition is capable of amounting to a disability within the meaning of Section 6 of the Equality Act 2010. The case concerned a charity worker who initially suffered mild, flu-like symptoms after contracting the virus. At the end of his isolation period, however, he…

Nurse Receives £41,000 Compensation for Constructive Dismissal

A nurse who was subjected to bullying behaviour by a colleague has succeeded in her claim of constructive unfair dismissal against the NHS trust she worked for. The nurse had begun working for the trust as a Diabetes Specialist Nurse in 2012. In September 2018, she disagreed with a colleague about the appropriate treatment of a patient, and he asked if she was questioning his competency. After she reported the incident it was confirmed that her clinical assessment had been correct. She claimed…

Providing Your Services Via a Company May Not Always Be a Good Idea

There can be advantages, both in terms of flexibility and tax efficiency, in providing your services via a private company. However, as an Employment Tribunal (ET) ruling showed, such arrangements may also have the less desirable effect of stripping you of any employment rights you might otherwise have had. A nurse who worked part time at a care home launched ET proceedings against its owner, alleging unfair constructive dismissal and that she had been subjected to racial discrimination and…