20-05-2025
Executive whose job was given to someone else while she was off sick with breast cancer wins £1.2m payout
A senior female executive has won more than £1.2 million after her job was given to someone else whilst she was off sick with breast cancer.
Andrea Wainwright was left feeling 'traumatised and broken' when she found out on Linkedin that a colleague had taken over her role, an employment tribunal heard.
The 48-year-old 'fighter' - who was paid more than £80,000 a year - discovered the move by the banking services firm she was employed by just three months after taking time off work to undergo chemotherapy.
When she was well enough to return, she made an official complaint about her treatment and then resigned.
Five years later she won her claim for disability discrimination and unfair dismissal after successfully suing cashpoint firm Cennox.
Ms Wainwright has now been awarded a staggering £1,224,861 in total compensation.
Following her success, Ms Wainwright, from Chelmsford, Essex, told how losing her job following her diagnosis had 'destroyed' her and she had gone through the employment tribunal process on 'principal'.
The tribunal heard she began working for the company - who provide ATM machines - as head of installations in January 2018, after the firm took over her previous employers.
Ms Wainwright was diagnosed with Stage 3 breast cancer in August of that year and, after informing her bosses, took sick leave and started chemotherapy four days later.
The East London hearing was told that senior colleague Shelley Cawthorne temporarily stepped into her role.
In late October Ms Cawthorne told Stephen Garrod, Ms Wainwright's manager, that she had been offered a senior position at a competitor.
The tribunal heard this would have been a 'blow' to the company and so Mr Garrod offered her a permanent position as Head of Installations with a plan to split the role when Ms Wainwright returned.
Ms Cawthorne started her new role on November 1 and a new organisational chart was sent out.
This email was not sent to Ms Wainwright and there was no mention of her in the document.
But she became aware of the appointment three weeks later when she saw a post on LinkedIn inviting viewers to 'Congratulate Shelley for starting a new position as Head of Installations at Cennox', the tribunal heard, and was left 'understandably concerned'.
Ms Wainwright emailed HR Director Jennifer Spencer-Lee to clarify what was happening and what impact it would have for her return.
Ms Spencer-Lee told Ms Wainwright it was 'not expected' to affect her role and that Ms Cawthorne was leading the team 'for now'.
The tribunal found that this email was 'misleading' as it gave the impression Ms Cawthorne's role was temporary.
Ms Wainwright was then informed at a return to work meeting with Mr Garrod and Ms Spencer-Lee in June 2019 that the role was going to be split.
The tribunal heard that Ms Wainwright was unhappy with this and thought she had been demoted because of her cancer diagnosis.
She submitted an 11-page grievance two days after returning to work at the end of July saying she had been lied to by Mr Garrod and Ms Spencer-Lee.
Her complaint was not upheld and then at the end of August she discovered she had been misled, as Ms Cawthorne told her that her appointment as Head of Installations was permanent, not temporary as her bosses had claimed.
When Ms Wainwright's appeal against the decision to reject her grievance was then delayed because the investigator fell ill, she resigned.
In her resignation letter to Ms Spencer-Lee on September 27 she wrote: 'I am very unhappy about the way I have been treated and set out some of the more serious matters.
'I was assured that my role was unchanged but when I returned to work I did not return to my existing role. I was demoted and several key responsibilities were taken away from me.'
The tribunal found that Ms Wainwright had been misled about the changes to her role and discriminated against.
Employment Judge Catrin Lewis found Ms Wainwright 'felt traumatised and broken as a result of she had indeed been lied to, which was found to have been an act of discrimination.'
The judge added: 'At that time (she) had been through cancer treatment and was recovering, although she was on continuing medication in respect of the chances of recurrence.
'She had been well enough to return to work and had been described as a fighter.'
Speaking after the tribunal decision, Ms Wainwright said her 25-year-old daughter has lifelong care needs and building a career whilst caring for her daughter had been hard.
'I never did this for money, I did this on principle', she said.
'To lose your job and career just because of a cancer diagnosis really destroys you, at a time when everything is in question, I was fighting for my life and the to have everything else taken away from you is unbelievable.
'I hope the outcome will prevent such blatant discrimination from happening again.
'It will allow me to close the door on a very unpleasant chapter, I am still having to rebuild from scratch.
'I fight for other cancer survivors, the only way to stop this to challenge it.'
Ms Wainwright added that the £1.2 million award will give her some space to recover without the financial pressures she has been experiencing.
'I have had financial pressure from day one', she added.
'Then I hope it will give me the money to invest in my future career once I have had a chance to think about that.
'It has been very disruptive, I am having to start my career from scratch through no fault of my own.
'It has been a very turbulent few years.'
Ms Wainwright has been awarded a total compensation of £1,224,861.94, including a previously announced £40,000 for injury to feelings.
The award also includes almost £400,00 in past loss of earnings, £300,00 for future losses and £130,000 in interest payments.
