Category: whistleblowers

Whistle-blowers Beware: Just because there is a PD doesn’t necessarily mean that the employer can’t respond (and damage your reputation) in order to ‘set the record straight’ – 3PB

Posted March 25th, 2020 in appeals, causation, chambers articles, disclosure, doctors, employment, employment tribunals, hospitals, news, whistleblowers by sally

‘Edwin Jesudason (‘C’), was a paediatric surgeon who was an honorary consultant working in the Department of Paediatric Surgery (‘DPS’) in the respondent NHS trust from 2006 until he resigned in 2012. Between 2009 and 2014 he made a series of allegations to the Trust, regulatory bodies and the media where he alleged fundamental failings in the operation of the DPS including serious allegations of professional incompetence, use of improper medical practices, attempts to cover up wrongdoing and in some cases he named and criticised specific individuals.’

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3PB, 2nd March 2020

Source: www.3pb.co.uk

Whistle-blowers Beware: Just because there is a PD doesn’t necessarily mean that the employer can’t respond (and damage your reputation) in order to ‘set the record straight’ – 3PB

Posted March 24th, 2020 in appeals, chambers articles, disclosure, doctors, employment, employment tribunals, hospitals, news, whistleblowers by sally

‘Edwin Jesudason (‘C’), was a paediatric surgeon who was an honorary consultant working in the Department of Paediatric Surgery (‘DPS’) in the respondent NHS trust from 2006 until he resigned in 2012. Between 2009 and 2014 he made a series of allegations to the Trust, regulatory bodies and the media where he alleged fundamental failings in the operation of the DPS including serious allegations of professional incompetence, use of improper medical practices, attempts to cover up wrongdoing and in some cases he named and criticised specific individuals.’

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3PB, 2nd March 2020

Source: www.3pb.co.uk

Employment Tribunal awards whistleblowing doctor £857,000 – Local Government Lawyer

Posted March 20th, 2020 in compensation, damages, disclosure, doctors, hospitals, news, unfair dismissal, whistleblowers by sally

‘A doctor who lost his job after making whistleblowing disclosures has been awarded more than £857,000 by an Employment Tribunal.’

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Local Government Lawyer, 19th March 2020

Source: www.localgovernmentlawyer.co.uk

Employment Update – Spring 2020 – Ely Chambers

Posted February 19th, 2020 in chambers articles, employment, harassment, news, non-disclosure agreements, privacy, sexual offences, transfer of undertakings, whistleblowers by sally

‘The latest from our Employment team.’

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Ely Place, February 2020

Source: elyplace.com

Case Comment: Royal Mail Group Ltd v Jhuti [2019] UKSC 55, Part Two – UKSC Blog

Posted February 18th, 2020 in disciplinary procedures, employment, news, reasons, Supreme Court, unfair dismissal, whistleblowers by sally

‘There are a number of ways in which this judgment opens the door to arguments about its wider impact.’

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UKSC Blog, 17th February 2020

Source: ukscblog.com

Case Comment: Royal Mail Group Ltd v Jhuti [2019] UKSC 55, Part One – UKSC Blog

Posted February 18th, 2020 in disciplinary procedures, employment, news, reasons, Supreme Court, unfair dismissal, whistleblowers by sally

‘If an employee is dismissed on bogus grounds invented by someone more senior than her in the business, that person’s true reason for acting as they did will be the real reason for the dismissal, even if the decision to dismiss was made by another person acting in good faith in reliance on the bogus grounds.’

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UKSC Blog, 17th February 2020

Source: ukscblog.com

COA Considers Causation & the Reach of s.43G in Jesudason v Alder Hey Childrens NHS Foundation Trust – Old Square Chambers

Posted February 11th, 2020 in causation, disclosure, news, victimisation, whistleblowers by sally

‘Mr Jesudason was a consultant paediatric surgeon for the Trust. Between 2009 and 2014, he made a number of allegations to the Trust, several regulatory bodies and other third parties, including the media. These allegations related to serious failures and wrongdoing in the operation of his Department at the Trust. Following the termination of his employment, Mr Jesudason brought claims of whistleblowing. His claims were dismissed by the ET and the EAT. Giving the sole judgment in the Court of Appeal, Sir Patrick Elias dismissed Mr Jesudason’s appeal.’

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Old Square Chambers, 4th February 2020

Source: www.oldsquare.co.uk

Acas guidance warns against routine use of non-disclosure agreements – Local Government Lawyer

Posted February 11th, 2020 in employment, harassment, news, non-disclosure agreements, sexual offences, whistleblowers by sally

‘Non-disclosure agreements should not be used routinely or to prevent someone from reporting sexual harassment, discrimination or whistleblowing at work, Acas has said in new guidance.’

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Local Government Lawyer, 10th February 2020

Source: www.localgovernmentlawyer.co.uk

NDAs ‘should not silence sexual harassment claims’ – BBC News

Posted February 10th, 2020 in disclosure, employment, harassment, news, non-disclosure agreements, sexual offences, victims, whistleblowers, women by sally

‘Non-disclosure agreements (NDAs) should not be used to prevent someone from reporting sexual harassment in the workplace, according to new guidance.’

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BBC News, 10th February 2020

Source: www.bbc.co.uk

West Suffolk Hospital staff ‘feared raising concerns’, says CQC – BBC News

Posted January 30th, 2020 in hospitals, news, reports, whistleblowers by tracey

‘Staff at a hospital accused of conducting a “witch hunt” to identify a whistleblower felt a lack of “freedom to speak up”, a report has said.’

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BBC News, 30th January 2020

Source: www.bbc.co.uk

Congolese torture survivor gets Home Office reprieve – The Guardian

Posted January 15th, 2020 in asylum, deportation, government departments, immigration, news, torture, whistleblowers by sally

‘A torture survivor from Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) is celebrating after a Home Office U-turn allowed him to stay in the UK.’

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The Guardian, 15th January 2020

Source: www.theguardian.com

Employment and Discrimination Newsletter – January 2020 – 3PB

Posted January 9th, 2020 in employment, equal pay, equality, limitations, news, self-employment, transgender persons, whistleblowers by sally

‘Craig Ludlow edits 3PB’s latest Employment & Discrimination newsletter, including contributions from Andrew MacPhail and Daniel Brown.’

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3PB, 6th January 2020

Source: www.3pb.co.uk

Doctors at West Suffolk hospital ‘too scared’ to report safety issues – The Guardian

Posted December 12th, 2019 in bullying, disciplinary procedures, doctors, hospitals, news, whistleblowers by tracey

‘Doctors at a hospital accused of bullying its staff have told the NHS care regulator that they are too scared to report lapses in patient safety in case they end up facing disciplinary action.’

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The Guardian, 11th December 2019

Source: www.theguardian.com

s.103A and concealed reasons; Royal Mail v. Jhuti [2019] UKSC 55 – Parklane Plowden Chambers

Posted December 10th, 2019 in disciplinary procedures, employment tribunals, news, reasons, Supreme Court, unfair dismissal, whistleblowers by sally

‘The Supreme Court has confirmed that a Tribunal may find that the reason for the dismissal is something other than that given to the employee by the decision-maker – even where that reason is genuinely held by the decision maker; Royal Mail Group Ltd v. Jhuti [2019] UKSC 55 (“Jhuti”).’

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Parklane Plowden, 9th December 2019

Source: www.parklaneplowden.co.uk

Automatic Unfair Dismissal: Can the reason for the dismissal be other than that given to the employee by the decision-maker? – Pallant Chambers

Posted December 10th, 2019 in disciplinary procedures, employment tribunals, news, reasons, Supreme Court, unfair dismissal, whistleblowers by sally

‘The question for the Supreme Court in Royal Mail Group Limited v Jhuti [2019] UKSC 55 was whether in a claim for unfair dismissal can the reason for the dismissal be other than that given to the employee by the decision-maker?’

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Pallant Chambers, 5th December 2019

Source: www.pallantchambers.co.uk

The Reason Behind the Reason Behind the Decision to Dismiss – Littleton Chambers

Posted December 4th, 2019 in disciplinary procedures, employment tribunals, news, reasons, Supreme Court, unfair dismissal, whistleblowers by sally

‘The Supreme Court has allowed the appeal in Royal Mail Group Ltd -v- Jhuti [2019] UKSC 55 and has held unanimously that when deciding what was the reason for dismissal in unfair dismissal, it may not be enough simply to consider what was subjectively in the mind of the decision-maker. In a unanimous decision delivered by Lord Wilson (Lady Hale (President), Lord Carnwath, Lord Hodge and Lady Arden concurring) the Supreme Court has held that where the real reason is hidden from the decision-maker behind an invented reason, the court must penetrate through the invention and decide upon the basis of the real reason [paragraphs 60-62 of the Judgment]. ‘

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Littleton Chambers, 27th November 2019

Source: www.littletonchambers.com

New Judgment: Royal Mail Group Ltd v Jhuti [2019] UKSC 55 – UKSC Blog

Posted November 27th, 2019 in appeals, employment, news, postal service, reasons, statutory interpretation, Supreme Court, unfair dismissal, whistleblowers by sally

‘The appeal concerned the dismissal of Ms Jhuti from her employment by Royal Mail Group Ltd. The key question of law that it raised was whether in a claim for unfair dismissal under Part X of the Employment Rights Act 1996, the reason for the dismissal can be other than that given to the employee by the employer’s appointed decision-maker.’

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UKSC Blog, 27th November 2019

Source: ukscblog.com

Secretary “humiliated” by comments on 50th birthday loses claim against law firm – Legal Futures

Posted November 11th, 2019 in age discrimination, disclosure, employment, employment tribunals, harassment, law firms, news, public interest, whistleblowers by sally

‘A legal secretary who claimed she felt humiliated and insulted by a colleague commenting on her 50th birthday has lost her claim for harassment and age discrimination against the law firm.’

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Legal Futures, 8th November 2019

Source: www.legalfutures.co.uk

From contract to role: using human rights to widen the personal scope of employment protections – Oxford Human Rights Hub

Posted November 6th, 2019 in contract of employment, freedom of expression, human rights, judges, judiciary, news, Supreme Court, whistleblowers by sally

‘The UK Supreme Court’s judgment in Gilham demonstrates how human rights can be used to widen the class of individuals who benefit from employment rights (the “personal scope” of the rights). Further, the court’s reasoning evidences a shift away from contractual thinking in labour law.’

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Oxford Human Rights Hub, 1st November 2019

Source: ohrh.law.ox.ac.uk

Gilham: breaking down the limitations on whistleblowing protection – where next? – Littleton Chambers

Posted October 31st, 2019 in contract of employment, human rights, judges, judiciary, news, Supreme Court, whistleblowers by sally

‘Whistleblowing protection continues to expand and develop. Even without reliance on Art.10 ECHR the Courts have not been shy of adopting what might at first appear to be a strained construction of the legislation to further the underlying policy objectives. Now the Supreme Court’s decision in Gilham v Ministry of Justice [2019] UKSC 44 has demonstrated the strength of the interpretative obligation to construe the legislation in accordance with Article 10 (or that article read with A.14 ECHR). Indeed this points to the possibility of extending the scope of protection much further. Litigation over the position of secondees, applicants, volunteers and others, as well as in relation to detriment inflicted because of a perception (justified or not) that a worker has or may be about to make a disclosure, or was associated in some way with someone else’s disclosures, can be expected. These cases will need to explore the scope of the State’s positive obligation to protect freedom of expression. They will no doubt face arguments that the necessary reading down is against the grain, or contrary to fundamental features, of the statutory provisions.’

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Littleton Chambers, 17th October 2019

Source: www.littletonchambers.com