An estate agent whose boss refused to let her finish work early so that she could pick up her daughter from nursery has been awarded nearly £185,000.
Sales manager Alice Thompson put in a request to her employer that she work four days a week and finish at 5pm in order to collect her child before 6pm, when the nursery shut.
However, her request was rejected; director Paul Sellar claimed the business could not afford for her to work part-time. As a result, Ms Thompson resigned and took her employer, Scancrown Ltd, to an Employment Tribunal, claiming sex discrimination.
According to Ms Thompson, she had worked for the firm for a number of years in a highly-paid position, but her relationship with Mr Sellar deteriorated when she told him she was pregnant in 2018.
It was on returning from maternity leave that she asked for flexible working to accommodate childcare requirements. But Mr Sellar denied it for multiple reasons including "additional costs".
Said Ms Thompson:
"I made a request for flexible working that wasn't seriously considered. I proposed what would have worked for me. If that didn't work for the company, I would have been more than happy to hear a counter offer, what might work for them. If they needed me for the full hours, maybe eight 'til five instead of nine 'til six, that's something I could have worked around. But it was shut down, every avenue, not listened to, not considered. And I was left with no other option but to resign."
Employment Judge Sarah Jane Goodman concluded Ms Thompson was discriminated against "because of her sex". She said:
"Here the claimant resented that flexible working appeared not to be considered properly – as in our finding it was not – and felt that this was an injustice because of her sex, which it was."
The following are permitted reasons for refusing a request:
- Burden of additional costs.
- Detrimental effect on ability to meet customer demand.
- Inability to reorganise work among existing staff.
- Inability to recruit additional staff.
- Detrimental impact on quality.
- Detrimental impact on performance.
- Insufficiency of work during the period the employee proposes to work.
- Planned structural changes.
She was awarded £184,961.32 for loss of earnings, pension contributions, injury to feelings and interest.