City worker wins dismissal claim

A City worker has won her claim for unfair dismissal, victimisation and disability discrimination. Julie Pine, 31, from Leavenheath in Suffolk, who suffers chronic fatigue syndrome, was made redundant from her job at buyout investment firm Cinven.

An employment tribunal ruled the firm failed to make reasonable adjustments for her disability and did not follow dismissal procedures. The tribunal has not yet made any decisions about possible compensation. The employment tribunal found she was dismissed in December 2006 because there was no longer any work for her to do, and not because she was disabled.

But it criticised Cinven for failing to give her the opportunity of part-time or home work, when some of her roles came to an end while she was on long-term sick leave.

Chairwoman of the panel, Elizabeth Potter, said: "The tribunal's conclusion is of unfair dismissal. The claimant was not offered an alternative to redundancy. The company did not explore the possibility of part-time work, explore working from home. There were a number of things that could have been explored which were not."

Ms Pine's lawyer, Richard Woodman, said his client was "relieved and delighted" at the verdict.

A spokesman for Cinven said: "We are pleased that no harassment or direct discrimination on grounds of disability has been upheld. We are undertaking a full review of all our employment procedures."