PEOPLE AND CULTURE

NEWS

Whistleblowing manager was unfairly dismissed

3 Nov 2021

    • An accounts and HR manager has won her claim for unfair dismissal after she was fired for blowing the whistle on her boss when he spent company money on personal items.

    Angela Curtis raised concerns with Chairman of Milltek Sport in Derby, Phillip Millington, that Managing Director Steve Pound was “fraudulently” using a work credit card. Mr Pound heard from another employee that Ms Curtis had raised the issue and proceeded to suspend her publicly in the office over claims she was “spreading details of directors' salaries”.

    He accused her of going “behind his back”, then “manipulated and influenced” an investigation by hiding and embellishing evidence to get Ms Curtis sacked in November 2019. Ms Curtis proceeded to successfully sue Milltek Sport for unfair dismissal as a result of her whistleblowing at Nottingham Employment Tribunal Centre.

    There are a number of key areas that constitute a whistleblowing complaint and for which the whistleblower is protected by law. These are:

    • Where there is a criminal offence.
    • A breach of health and safety or if someone is in danger.
    • Risk of or actual damage to the environment.
    • Where there is a miscarriage of justice.
    • Where an organisation is breaking the law.
    • Where the whistleblower believes someone is covering up wrongdoing.

    A Tribunal report said:

    "[Ms Curtis’] evidence is that she had some reservations about the manner in which Mr Pound was using company expenses; that she discovered that around £3,000 worth of expenses was owed by Mr Pound to the company. She had noticed Mr Pound was using expenses for personal use and when this was raised with him he repaid some of the sums but not all of them and he continued to owe about £3,000 to the company."

    Employment Judge Rachel Broughton said Mr Pound was “motivated” to have Ms Curtis fired as she blew the whistle and influenced dismissing officer, Robert Thorpe, who was junior to him.

    She said:

    "In the circumstances, the Tribunal conclude that Mr Pound had an unlawful motivation… He manipulated the evidence and because he was Mr Thorpe’s line manager and held a very senior position in the company, Mr Thorpe did not question the evidence he had been given."

    Ms Curtis is expected to receive several thousand pounds in compensation.