Nightclub Dancer Compensated Following Vicious Assault by Customer

Public-facing businesses are under a clear legal duty to protect their personnel from the risk of assault by customers. In a case on point, a nightclub dancer who was viciously attacked by a client was awarded substantial compensation after a culpable delay in security staff coming to her…

Feb 21, 2022

She remonstrated with the client after he broke the club’s strict ‘no touching’ rule by slapping her on the buttock. He first tried to punch her before smashing a glass over her head, resulting in 2.5-centimetre wound to her forehead that required stitches. Security staff intervened but the police were not called and the client left the club without being identified.

After she launched proceedings against the club, the court found that she bore no responsibility for what happened. The client was 100 per cent to blame for the assault. Had security staff been constantly scanning the club for trouble, as they should have been, they would have witnessed the start of the altercation and intervened within a few seconds. Had that occurred, the assault would probably have been prevented. The dancer was awarded £12,000 in damages.

Racial Harassment – Black Nurse Advised to ‘Bleach Her Skin White’

Insensitive race-related comments in the workplace may not be intended to cause distress, but they can nevertheless amount to racial harassment. An Employment Tribunal (ET) made that point in the case of a black nurse who was told that she needed to bleach her skin white so that patients would be nice to her. The agency nurse worked in the challenging environment of an immigration removal centre. After she was racially abused by a detainee, a colleague told her: ‘You need to get a pool of…

Employers – Knee-Jerk Reactions to Fractious Situations Can Cost You Dear

When employees query the contents of their wage packets, terse conversations can ensue. As one case showed, however, knee-jerk reactions to such situations are a positive invitation to Employment Tribunal (ET) proceedings. The case concerned a hotel worker in her probationary period. She considered that her first payslip was about £1,000 short. She had been paid in accordance with the hotel’s payroll system, but that system had not been explained to her. Her initial reaction was to place a…

Suspension on Award of Fire Brigade Safety Equipment Contract Maintained

If you feel that you have been treated unfairly in a public contract tendering exercise, you are anything but powerless and should take legal advice straight away. A High Court case on point concerned the award of a contract for the supply of protective breathing equipment to a municipal fire brigade. Recent years have brought significant improvements in safety apparatus used by firefighters and, against the background of the Grenfell Tower disaster, the brigade was anxious to update its…