Winning an employment tribunal claim – a senior executive’s success story

The employment team recently represented a senior executive against his former employers and assisted him in winning his claim for constructive unfair dismissal and breach of contract in the employment tribunal.

A Chartered Quantity Surveyor by profession, our client joined his employer in 1997 as director of their London office. In May 1999, he was promoted to the main board and became an executive director. In 2006 he was promoted to head of UK and European operations. In 2008, his employer was purchased and in the new organisation his role became Operations Director. At about the same time as the take-over, our client was instrumental in winning a tender for the provision of professional services to a large oil refinery project in an oil-rich state in the Middle East.

Our client went to the Middle East on a series of long assignments to work on the project. Whilst he was abroad his title and position were unilaterally removed from him, his contract of employment was repeatedly breached including being marginalised from the business. The situation became untenable leaving him with no option but to resign because of the way he was being treated.

Our client engaged the emloyment team to represent him because she had been recommended to him as a robust and gutsy employment law litigator. The team commenced employment tribunal proceedings which were resisted and the matter proceeded all the way to a 5 day final hearing in London Central employment tribunal. The tribunal unanimously found in favour for our client in relation to his constructive unfair dismissal and breach of contract claims.

This was the outcome and result that our client was looking for and had asked the employment team to try and deliver. This is also a testament to his determination to put things right and to set the record straight. He felt that his reputation had been badly attacked and damaged by his employers and achieving the unanimous decision from the Tribunal in his favour properly vindicated him and helped repair the damage that had been done.

The employment team at Thomson Snell & Passmore regularly advises employees in relation to issues arising out of their employment relationship with their employers. The team has extensive experience in advising and dealing on exit strategies, compromise agreements and when appropriate conducting claimsin the employment tribunal.