Veitch Penny LLP - Exeter | Crediton, Devon

Case

Watkins –v- Crouch
Employment Appeal Tribunal

Issues

(1) Redundancy procedure
(2) Selection criteria

Facts

The claim related to a redundancy exercise in a solicitors’ practice. Two out of eight administrators had to be made redundant. The employer undertook a scoring system and the claimant was chosen. She then found that the receptionist had actually scored lower than her in that selection process.

When she asked her employer, she was told that the point scoring was only part of the exercise and that the firm would take into account overall matters such as the need of a business. They said that the receptionist had significant service and was well known to the clients and, in essence, they could not do without her.

Ms Watkins alleged that she was unaware of this additional criteria and she argued that it had been brought in to correct the earlier result of the selection process i.e. it had been rigged to get the result that they wanted. At the Employment Tribunal the employer was successful. Ms Watkins appealed to the Employment Appeal Tribunal.

Decision

The claimant’s appeal would be allowed and the case remitted for re-hearing because of the acute conflict of facts on the part of the witnesses. The EAT felt that the Tribunal had not properly dealt with Ms Watkins’ allegations. They questioned whether she was made aware of the extra criterion at the outset.

Comments

This is a useful reminder of a basic point. A selection process is supposed to be open and transparent. If Ms Watkins was correct in her allegations, then the employer rendered the whole exercise void by adding such a vague and subjective criterion after the event. The very idea of the selection process is to retain those who are best placed to help the employer going forward.