A London firm has been ordered to pay a female bus driver more than £55,000 after she successfully complained of sexual harassment by nearly 500 male drivers.
The drivers at Go-Ahead London’s Northumberland Park depot were sent an email by the woman – known as Ms G – warning them to stop sexually harassing her, after complaining she suffered upsetting and violating remarks every day for more than two years.
The case was heard at Watford Employment Tribunal earlier this year and Judge Lewis said he would decide at a later date how much to award the woman who was granted anonymity.
Now, Judge Lewis has awarded her a total of £55,167 – including £23,612 for constructive unfair dismissal and £17,000 for injury to feelings. Some of the award also includes interest at 8%.
The Tribunal was told that the firm employed 500 drivers – 90% men – at the London depot where Ms G had been employed since 2013 as a bus driver, and that she became so upset by sexual verbal remarks that she sent an email to nearly 500 male drivers at the depot, complaining about their alleged behaviour.
The email was said to have been “robust and well written” and contained some of the offensive remarks allegedly made against her.
The defendants told the Tribunal that some drivers regarded the email as offensive and that management told her the email had been unacceptable.
She was suspended from using company emails and the firm issued a notice to all employees reminding them about “dignity at work”.
Ms G eventually admitted she should not have sent the email to everyone and that she had done so when in a “low state and dark place”.
She later resigned – prompting her legal claim for constructive unfair dismissal [routeone/Court Report/17 January].
The judge’s report said: “We find that each remark constituted conduct of a sexual nature which had the purpose, or effect, of violating the claimant’s dignity or creating an environment for her which was intimidating, hostile, degrading, humiliating or offensive.”
