Usage of inaccessible work email accounts during employee's maternity leave

The Employment Appeal Tribunal ("EAT") held in SW Yorkshire Partnership NHS Foundation Trust v Jackson that it can be unfavourable treatment under the Equality Act 2010 to send a woman on maternity leave an important email at an email address that she can't access. However, it will be necessary for a tribunal to consider the reason why the email was sent in that way.

One of the Claimants, Ms Pease, was on maternity leave while a redundancy exercise was being carried out. As part of the redundancy process, an important e-mail was sent to her e-mail address despite the fact that she was not accessing her account during her leave.

The Power of the 'Hypothetical Comparator'

The Employment Appeal Tribunal ("EAT") recently addressed the issue of hypothetical comparators in employment claims in Governing Body of Sutton Oak Church of England Primary School & 2 Others v. Mr M Whittaker.

The Respondent was a primary school teacher who was employed at the school since qualifying as a teacher in 2001. In 2002, conduct issues arose in respect of his relationship with a pupil. He had visited the child's home, offered him a "long ride in his car", had given him a birthday card and photograph and had been seen hugging and tickling him. The school decided that his conduct had been naïve and gave him a first written warning for inappropriate and unprofessional contact

Head Teacher's sexual orientation discrimination claim upheld

The Employment Appeal Tribunal ("EAT") has recently ruled upon whether adverse treatment of a gay Head Teacher can constitute constructive dismissal and sexual orientation discrimination. In Tywyn Primary School v Aplin, the EAT upheld the decision of the Employment Tribunal ("ET") that a Head Teacher suffered sexual orientation discrimination and constructive dismissal refusing the School's appeal.

Mr Aplin (42) had been a teacher for 19 years, the Deputy Head since 2009, and Head Teacher with effect from 1 September 2015. He was openly gay and the governing body of the School were aware. In August 2015, he met two 17 year olds through the Grindr app. After two meetings, the three of them had sex. The matter came to the notice of the police and the Local Authority's Social Services Department and a Professional Abuse Strategy Meeting (PASM) was arranged for late August 2015.

RIDDOR - Reporting for Schools

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Court of Appeal confirms the reasonableness of the suspension of a teacher pending an investigation for use of force

The Court of Appeal in The Mayor & Burgesses of the London Borough of Lambeth v. Agoreyo this week confirmed a decision of the County Court that a school had reasonable and proper cause for suspending a teacher in order to investigate allegations that she had used unreasonable force against two children, and that there had been no breach of the implied term of trust and confidence.

The Court of Appeal addressed an erroneous decision of the High Court, finding that it had conducted an impermissible interference with the County Court's assessment of the facts of the case. It also found that the High Court had erred by asking whether it was reasonable and/or necessary for the teacher to be suspended as the issue of necessity is not part of the required test.