Tribunal orders London borough to pay £4.6m over dismissal of director

The London Borough of Hammersmith and Fulham has been ordered to pay £4.6m in damages to a former senior employee after an Employment Tribunal found she had suffered disability discrimination.

The London borough has vowed to appeal the award and described the compensation claim as "vastly excessive, disputed and highly unprecedented".

The order follows an Employment Tribunal hearing in 2021 that considered the circumstances around the dismissal of Rachael Wright-Turner, former Director of Public Service Reform at the London borough.

At the time of her dismissal, Wright-Turner was suffering from Post Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD) due to work she had done in relation to the Grenfell fire and had recently been diagnosed with ADHD.

Wright-Turner was dismissed by Hammersmith and Fulham in August 2018. She lodged a complaint a month later in September, alleging disability discrimination, harassment, direct discrimination, a failure to make reasonable adjustments, and victimisation.

She also alleged unauthorised deductions from her wages and breaches of the ACAS Code of Practice.

In November 2021, the Employment Tribunal upheld in part the complaints concerning harassment, direct discrimination and discrimination arising from disability.

All other complaints made by Wright-Turner failed and were dismissed.

Commenting on the finding at the time, a council spokesperson said Hammersmith and Fulham was "disappointed with the tribunal's decision".

At a later remedy hearing in January 2024, the tribunal heard that since her dismissal, Wright-Turner's health had been damaged so significantly as to make it likely that she would never work again.

In addition, her marriage had ended, and repossession proceedings had started because she had been unable to pay mortgage arrears, which had arisen as a consequence of her lack of income.

The tribunal went on to take the decision of awarding exemplary damages, also known as punitive damages, against the council.

Although the judgment making the award has been handed down, the reasons behind the award are still awaited.

A spokesperson for Hammersmith & Fulham Council said: "We are very sorry for the ordeal suffered by Ms Wright-Turner, who joined Hammersmith & Fulham Council in the aftermath of the Grenfell tragedy in 2017.

"However, we have always considered Ms Wright-Turner's claim for compensation to be vastly excessive, disputed and highly unprecedented.

"While we are grateful to the tribunal panel for dismissing many of the exceptional claims that her lawyers have made, we still believe this award is excessive and will be looking to appeal."

Doyle Clayton partner Peter Daly, who acted for Ms Wright-Turner, said: "This is one of the largest awards ever made by an Employment Tribunal. It reflects both the scale of what Rachael has suffered, and the seriousness of the unlawful conduct by her former employer.

"The award of exemplary damages is particularly noteworthy and it is indicative that Hammersmith and Fulham's conduct fell egregiously below any acceptable standard for a public authority."

Commenting on the compensation on social media, Rachael Wright-Turner said: "I'm pleased that over £2m of the total award figure returns to the taxpayer via HMRC, and is not money that I personally receive.

"The remainder was awarded as my mental and physical health has been so devastated by my treatment and complications of severe complex PTSD that I weighed 6st 9lb at the remedy hearing.

"I will never be able to return to my former career. These damages include past earnings and future losses to retirement age."

Adam Carey