4 days ago
EXCLUSIVE Hotel chef sacked over blazing row with boyfriend in front of guests because he had slept with one of her friends blames anxiety as she wins £13,000 for wrongful dismissal
A young chef who was sacked from a luxury hotel after a foul-mouthed rant at her 'cheating' boyfriend in front of shocked guests has been awarded more than £13,000 by an employment tribunal.
Abbie Garner, 21, triggered a slew of complaints when she accused colleague Dylan Bolt of sleeping with one of her friends, screaming: 'You f****** made me love you, then you cheated on me, you c***.'
She was dismissed following a surly appearance at a disciplinary hearing where she turned up late and snapped: 'I have apologised. What else do you want?'
But she has won a claim for disability discrimination against The Lifehouse Spa and Hotel in Thorpe-le-Soken, Essex, after arguing her 'inability to control her anger' was because she was suffering from anxiety and depression at the time.
The commis chef was told she would receive £13,455 in damages due to her 'unfavourable treatment'.
The four-star 12-acre resort, which promises guests 'a world of complete serenity in our adults-only oasis' and charges up to £269 for an exclusive spa day, declined to comment when approached by the Mail.
A spokeswoman said: 'This is a personnel-related matter and our company policy means we will not comment on an employee, either current or previous.'
Ms Garner's father, David, 51, said: 'You can't see all disabilities.
'I'm not trying to say that the hotel are bad people. They made a common mistake and they have to realise that this is now unacceptable to treat staff or anyone in that manner. There needs to be more understanding.'
He added: 'It was a horrible break-up, unfortunately, but as they worked and lived together we tried to support them. But at work we couldn't do anything.
'She's doing well in herself [now]. She's got a new job, totally changed career because she could not handle the stress in a kitchen and the way it was handled.
'She's now working in care, so she's away from the one room hot stress scenario.
'The money won't change anything. She wants to work.'
The peace and quiet at the hotel was shattered on August 9, 2023, when Ms Garner, who worked in the hotel's two AA Rosette restaurant, got into an argument with her then-boyfriend at the start of her shift.
'Several of the staff heard [Miss Garner's] voice loudly swearing', the tribunal heard.
'She was arguing with Dylan Bolt, who she had been in a relationship with at the time. Mr Bolt had apparently slept with one of her friends.
'The argument started in a corridor outside the laundry room near the kitchen. This corridor connects to both the spa reception and an outdoor sunbathing area, both of which are used by guests.
'This corridor is open plan, with hard walls and floor – we accept that the sound echoes – and the door to the spa reception is open during the summer months.
'[Miss Garner] was heard shouting 'f***' and 'c***' at Mr Bolt by numerous staff and guests, including in the spa reception.
'The argument continued into the outdoor loading bay area next to a sunbathing area used by guests.'
A staff member told the hotel's investigation: 'I could hear shouting and swearing. The swearing from the female could be heard in the spa reception areas.
'The female member of staff was saying 'You fucking made me love you, then you cheated on me, you c***'.
'The male member of staff was saying 'I'm not f****** doing this now' and she replied 'F*** off then'.
'She was obviously angry and screaming and shouting but the language used and the shouting was not acceptable.'
The argument continued until a restaurant manager, Jean Mercure, intervened, the hearing was told.
He took Miss Garner into reception, while the head chef led Mr Bolt into the changing rooms.
The next day Sarah Tester, the hotel's finance and operations director, received several complaints about the shouting, with one guest giving negative remarks upon checking out.
After the investigation, Miss Garner was asked to attend to a disciplinary hearing on August 15, 2023.
But she failed to apologise when she turned up late, admitted she had not fully read her invitation letter and was not accompanied by a representative.
She admitted to the shouting and swearing and that it was unacceptable in the workplace but blamed Mr Bolt for her behaviour.
At the end of the meeting, she told Ms Tester: 'I have apologised. What else do you want?
Ms Tester concluded that Miss Garner had committed serious misconduct and decided to fire her.
The decision was then appealed, with Miss Garner stating that her irritability, anger and mood swings arose from her disabilities of depression, anxiety and polycystic ovary syndrome - a condition that affects fertility, metabolism and overall health - which she had previously made the hotel aware of.
When her appeal was turned down, she took the hotel's owners, Thorpe Hall Leisure Limited, to the tribunal in east London where she won claims for disability discrimination and a failure to make reasonable adjustments.
Employment Judge Catrin Lewis accepted Ms Garner's 'continued employment posed a risk to the respondent's reputation' but added this didn't justify filing to consider whether her conduct was linked to mental health.
She said: 'We have found that [Miss Garner's] inability to control her anger and her abruptness in the disciplinary meeting both arose in consequence of her disability.
'It was not disputed that being dismissed amounted to unfavourable treatment.
'We are satisfied that Ms Tester was aware that [her] behaviour was unusual and she was also aware that [she] had recently returned to work after a period of poor mental health and was on anti-depressant medication.'
The hotel, which has treatment rooms, a gym, pool, spa and 89 guestrooms, was dubbed the UK's first 'dementia spa' in 2019 after it started offering treatments for people with the condition.
