A man working for the NHS was dismissed after disclosing that he was experiencing suicidal thoughts in a case described as “appalling” by a judge.
HSJ reports that the judgment, delivered at Norwich Employment Tribunal in January, ruled Gordon Flemming’s claim that he was unfairly dismissed was “well-founded”.
Flemming had contacted the then human resources director Ruth McAll’s assistant, and Paul Henry, assistant director of operations support. He accused the trust of corporate bullying and said he had considered suicide.
“I am suffering from a severe and crippling mental illness,” he wrote.
“Are you really interested in what has happened to me Mr Henry, corporate bullying on such a scale that I have contemplated ending it all, does nobody care about that?”
However, McAll responded with a callous letter telling him not to discuss his complaints in future. “I appreciate you may have mental health problems, but this letter is not acceptable,” she wrote. “In future do not write to anyone else in the trust except me. If you continue to write such letters we will refer them to our solicitors.”
Then, following an altercation with his line manager, Flemming began to experience chest pains – later diagnosed as a heart attack. He was signed off work on health grounds, but his efforts to return to work were delayed by further rows with his line manager, as well as physical health relapses and the deepening mental health problems involving anxiety and depression.
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During a disciplinary meeting that followed, Flemming left his phone on the table during a break to secretly record the conversation being had about him. Robert Ashford, then Deputy Director for Operations, was caught saying: “I mean getting up and pummelling it into him [Flemming] with my fists is probably not appropriate in terms of policy, is it?”
“It seems to us beyond belief that someone conducting a disciplinary hearing would have felt it appropriate to use the language that he did,” the judgement stated. “The tribunal comment that in our combined 60 years’ judicial experience we have not before seen such an appalling response [to someone disclosing mental health issues].
“We use the word ‘appalling’ advisedly.”
HSJ asked the trust for comment. It said in a statement: “The trust has noted the tribunal’s judgment and is giving it close consideration. We are unable to comment further as the matter is not yet concluded.”
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Recent research from recruitment experts Robert Walters has found that over three quarters (76%) of professionals believe employees at their place of work would be uncomfortable discussing mental health challenges – largely due to fear of being stigmatised and singled out.
Chris Hickey, UK CEO of Robert Walters, said that just six per cent of hiring managers specifically recruit staff with expertise in mental health, and of these less than 10% feel that their skills are being used as effectively as possible.
“In addition to reviewing the recruitment process in order to seek professionals with specific skills and experience of dealing with mental health barriers in the workplace, employers should review their current workforce to identify staff who already possess expertise in the field and help to train them up,” he said.
