Latest news with #grossmisconduct
BBC News
5 hours ago
- BBC News
Northamptonshire police officer messaged teen on social media
A police officer who asked to meet a vulnerable teenage girl after first contacting her on social media has been found to have committed gross Police said it would have dismissed Mitchell Shorley without notice if he had not already resigned two weeks before his hearing.A misconduct disciplinary hearing on Wednesday heard that Mr Shorley, who joined the force in March 2022, started messaging the 16-year-old via TikTok on 12 June Constable Ivan Balhatchet said he was "appalled" by the "abhorrent behaviour", adding: "This is a serious case of an officer using his position to attempt to exploit a vulnerable young woman." The girl, known as person A, regularly posted videos about mental health and welfare on her TikTok account. She was a "looked after child" in the care of the local authority, and her social media posts reflected her personal Shorley messaged her and introduced himself as a police officer and began a series of communications, the hearing was there was a break in contact, it was the police officer who started messaging again, often under the pretext of checking the teenager was was willing to communicate with Mr Shorely but later told police she felt he had groomed her. Inappropriate purpose On 6 July 2024, he suggested moving the conversation to the social media app Snapchat, which does not retain message history and allows users to share hearing was told there was no suggestion that any sexual images were sent, but that Mr Shorley sent photos of himself while on A reported feeling "spammed" by more frequent messages once they moved to Snapchat, saying the messages also became suggestive and 13 August Mr Shorley allegedly told the teenager, "You'd look good with a police officer boyfriend", and admitted to having a crush on suggested meeting in person, which made the teenager feel uncomfortable, at which she pointed she spoke to a member of staff at her home who reported the case to police. Mr Shorley did not attend the misconduct Constable Balhatchet added: "I believe that on the balance of probabilities, the evidence proves that the former officer's conduct was cynical, manipulative and that this was an abuse of his position for an inappropriate sexual purpose."The public need to know that there is no place in the police service for people that abuse their position for their own ends or exploit the vulnerable."My decision is therefore that the former officer would have been dismissed had he not resigned." Follow Northamptonshire news on BBC Sounds, Facebook, Instagram and X.
BreakingNews.ie
12 hours ago
- BreakingNews.ie
Tesco ordered to rehire former worker who was fired for calling his manager 'useless'
Supermarket group Tesco has been ordered to re-hire a warehouse operative who was fired for calling his line manager 'useless.' The Workplace Relations Commission ruled that the employee, Cathal Hussey, had been unfairly dismissed by Tesco Ireland Limited after it sacked him for gross misconduct. Advertisement Although the investigation and disciplinary process used by the company to reach its decision was deemed to be procedurally fair, the WRC found that the sanction of dismissal was disproportionate. Trade union representative, Vivian Cullen of SIPTU for Mr Hussey, said the investigation into the conduct of the complainant, who had worked for Tesco for over 17 years before his dismissal, was 'a hatchet job.' Mr Cullen claimed Mr Hussey had legitimate grievances which were being ignored by management, which had led him to accuse his manager of being useless in a 12-page document submitted at a monthly meeting, which raised multiple concerns. He argued that the situation was a source of much frustration for Mr Hussey. Advertisement The WRC heard that an investigation into his conduct arose from a grievance raised by his manager, Martynas Bajarunas, that he was being bullied and harassed by the complainant. Mr Cullen claimed Mr Hussey was removed from the work roster after he submitted a medical certificate that he was unable to engage with the investigation process due to stress, but that he was fit to attend work. He was subsequently informed that he had breached the company's bullying and harassment policy. Mr Cullen claimed it resulted in a 'new and damning narrative' being manufactured, which resulted in the allegation of serious misconduct against Mr Hussey becoming one of gross misconduct. Advertisement The WRC heard that after Mr Hussey appealed the original decision to issue him with a final written warning, the sanction was overturned to one of summary dismissal. Mr Cullen accused Tesco of a cynical attempt to silence a genuine grievance by a worker and claimed the concept of bullying was being weaponised against the warehouse worker. He claimed the decision to dismiss him was 'punitive, capricious and disproportionate' and 'a crude exhibition of power' to control workers without question or challenge. Mr Cullen said, 'The emperor does not like being told that he isn't wearing any clothes.' Advertisement He said the sanction to dismiss the complainant was disproportionate and unwarranted. Mr Hussey declined to engage with a two-day hearing of the case at the WRC and did not give evidence. Representatives for Tesco told the WRC that the investigation process has gone ahead in Mr Hussey's absence in an effort to resolve the concerns raised. Tesco said the investigation officer had found the document in which he had called his manager useless to be concerning, unreasonable and disrespectful. Advertisement The company said an appeal officer decided the sanction of a final written warning was too lenient and imposed immediate dismissal instead, which was confirmed at a subsequent appeal hearing. Tesco claimed Mr Hussey missed meetings, raised objections and declined to answer questions throughout the process, as well as refusing to acknowledge that his behaviour was unacceptable. It also pointed out that it was not the first time that Mr Bajarunas had issues with the same employee. Tesco said it was opposed to the remedy of reinstatement or reengagement, given the trust and confidence that once existed between the company and Mr Hussey was 'broken beyond repair.' WRC adjudication officer, Eileen Campbell, said it was curious that behaviours that had been under the radar for some time between the complainant and his manager had not been addressed by Tesco. Ms Campbell said the process was frustrated by Mr Hussey's failure to attend meetings. Overall, she concluded that the dismissal was procedurally fair despite some flaws. However, she said the initial final written warning should have remained in place as the sanction of dismissal was not justified and was disproportionate. She also observed that the responsibility of managing the employment relationship falls unequivocally on an employer. However, Ms Campbell said she did not condone in any way Mr Hussey's behaviour towards his line manager, which was 'unacceptable on any level' and noted he had contributed to a significant degree to the situation in which he found himself. At the same time, she could not accept that a verbal interaction with a line manager could be the basis for an employer to lose faith with an employee 'of 17 years' standing.' Ms Campbell directed Tesco to re-engage Mr Hussey within four weeks, but not in his previous role, together with a final written warning to stay on his file for 12 months. The WRC said the period he was out of work should be treated as a period of unpaid suspension Ms Campbell said she was satisfied that there were many options for warehouse operative roles in such a large company and expressed hope that Mr Hussey would use the opportunity to modify his behaviour.
BBC News
6 days ago
- BBC News
Ex-Lincolnshire PC shared bodycam footage of him tasering man
A former Lincolnshire Police officer who shared bodycam footage of him tasering a suspect during an arrest has been found guilty of gross Packer, who was based in Skegness, sent the footage to a friend, bragging the man had "gone down like a sack of potatoes".He also sent "incredibly offensive" racist messages, used discriminatory language on Snapchat and kept confidential police information on his mobile phone, a misconduct hearing was told.A panel earlier ruled Packer would have been dismissed from the force for gross misconduct if he had not already resigned in March 2024. The hearing at the Nettleham police headquarters, near Lincoln, heard the former officer had tasered a suspect who became aggressive while attending a domestic assault in October uploaded the footage to the police computer system but later accessed and filmed it, before sharing the that month, Packer also shared details about another three people who had been arrested to a friend, including names and a vehicle linked to former officer's actions were deemed to be gross misconduct, breaking the standards for respect and courtesy, orders and instructions, confidentiality, equality and diversity, and discreditable giving his ruling, Chief Constable Paul Gibson described the officer's behaviour as "blatant and premeditated", and said it "undermined confidence" in the who did not attend the hearing, had shown "no remorse", he added. Listen to highlights from Lincolnshire on BBC Sounds, watch the latest episode of Look North or tell us about a story you think we should be covering here. Download the BBC News app from the App Store for iPhone and iPad or Google Play for Android devices
Irish Times
18-07-2025
- Irish Times
Man accused of grabbing colleague by throat and using homophobic slur loses unfair dismissal case
A recycling depot worker who denied grabbing his colleague by the throat and using a homophobic slur after his religious beliefs were insulted has lost his unfair dismissal claim at the Workplace Relations Commission (WRC). Seamus Behan lost his job of 12 years as a van driver for Liberties Recycling Development and Training CLG in February of last year following the altercation with another worker just before Christmas 2023. At a hearing of Mr Behan's complaint under the Unfair Dismissals Act 2014, Liberties Recycling told the WRC his behaviour on December 20th, 2023 amounted to gross misconduct. The company said the finding was arrived at after what it described as a fair investigation and disciplinary process. READ MORE Company manager Adam Moloney said 'multiple' statements from staff recounted 'off the charts' behaviour from Mr Behan towards the other worker, Mr A. Mr Moloney said workers told him Mr Behan was 'verbally abusive, behaving aggressively, and damaged company property' during the incident. He said it 'wasn't clear' from the statements what had first happened other than that the two men 'pushed each other'. Mr Moloney said Mr Behan was at reception in the depot 'shouting abuse' at Mr A, would not leave when asked and 'kept trying to go at him'. Management tried to persuade gardaí to come, but there was no response by closing time. A duty manager suspended Mr Behan and Mr A and sent them away via separate exits. The complainant's representative, Thomas Behan, argued that witness statements had been 'handpicked' to support a case that his client was 'violent' and that CCTV had been 'purposely left out' of the investigation. The company said any footage of the incident was taped over during the Christmas break, so it was not available when the investigation began in the new year. The tribunal was told the row followed a complaint made by Mr A about Mr Behan's alleged conduct towards him six days earlier. It was alleged the complainant on that occasion grabbed Mr A's hand and squeezed until Mr A asked him to let go. Mr Behan then turned to another worker and allegedly said: 'Watch how I shake a real man's hand.' Mr Behan said he knew nothing of this informal complaint until after the incident on December 20th, with his representative arguing any difficulties between the men ought to have been addressed sooner by management. Mr Behan said Mr A was 'an hour late' returning with a van for a shift handover on December 20th and he was 'in a hurry to get out' so as to avoid working late without pay. 'I went to your man ... he was just numb about everything. Because I didn't know anything about the 14th, I was at the van, and he was at the van. He started mumbling stuff about something, and then he got aggressive towards me,' he said. 'This guy pursued me, I went away from the van, he's aggressive, in my face, spitting in my face,' Mr Behan said, adding that the spitting was not 'intentional'. 'He's giving me lackery about Pope John Paul, lackery about my religion. He deeply upset me,' he said. The complainant said he 'wouldn't repeat' his colleague's remarks during the disciplinary process that followed because it was 'filthy' and 'vulgar' language. Mr Behan denied using a slur toward Mr A in the course of the altercation, as had been indicated in statements gathered by the company. 'I don't even use the word 'f****t',' he said. 'Everyone's twisting and turning statements.' He said a female supervisor was standing between him and Mr A, so it would have been 'impossible for me to grab the man by the neck'. He told the tribunal Mr A pushed him as the altercation continued and that the CCTV footage 'would prove that as well'. He said he was 'well warmed up' by his colleague by the time he reached the office. 'I raised my voice. Is that a sacking offence?' he said. 'No one wanted to investigate my statement ... My statement is the truth, on my religious beliefs.' In her decision, WRC adjudicator Eileen Campbell stated: 'Taking all the circumstances into account I find, as a matter of probability, the complainant's actions on the day and his behaviour on the day to be aggressive, uncontrolled and unacceptable.' She added that, on balance, the company's version of events was 'more convincing than that of the complainant' and there were 'substantial grounds' justifying Mr Behan's dismissal.
Daily Mail
16-07-2025
- Health
- Daily Mail
JULIE BINDEL: A clown show of a case made Sandie Peggie's life a misery - now it's time NHS chiefs face the consequences for what they forced her to endure
The Sandie Peggie vs NHS Fife employment tribunal took a dramatic turn yesterday when the internal disciplinary investigation cleared the nurse of all gross misconduct allegations. On the evening before the case resumed came information that four gross misconduct allegations: two relating to patient care failures, one of misgendering Dr Beth Upton, and one relating to her encounter with Dr Upton in the workplace female-only changing room on Christmas Eve 2023, which were classed as 'hate incidents', were dropped. Peggie is a female nurse who objected to sharing a changing room at NHS Fife with the trans-identifying Dr Upton, both before and after a gruelling shift on the ward. Peggie felt uncomfortable and intimidated by Dr Upton's presence and raised this with her manager but nothing was done to address the issue. In fact, she was informed that the doctor had a right to use the female-only changing room. On 24 December 2023, there was a confrontation between the two. Peggie, a professional subordinate, objected to Dr Upton using the space because the changing room is a single-sex facility, permitted by law. A hard-working nurse with three decades of experience, she was subsequently placed under investigation and suspended. Peggie fought back and took both NHS Fife and the doctor to a tribunal, citing unlawful discrimination and harassment against her. This development has significant implications for NHS Fife which is sharing a legal team and, therefore, a legal narrative with Dr Upton, who triggered the complaints against Sandie Peggie. The result of this case will have wider ramifications for the way the NHS deals with the issue of gender identity versus biological sex. While I am one of the many common sense citizens who is delighted for long-serving nurse Peggie, I am astounded and horrified that NHS Fife put her through these stressful disciplinary proceedings at all – simply for challenging a biological male for using the women's changing room. It is unclear whether there were specific policies in place when Dr Upton began to work at NHS Fife, but during the tribunal we learned those tasked with implementing equality and diversity protocols decreed that the doctor had a right to use those spaces. The tribunal now has to decide whether or not the presence of trans-identifying Dr Upton in that changing room is lawful, or whether it amounts to unlawful harassment of Peggie. While it is probably still in Dr Upton's best interests to argue that Peggie engaged in harassment and endangered patients, it is very hard to see how that's still in NHS Fife's best interests. And it is just as hard to see how Jane Russell KC can continue to argue these points when one of her clients has now determined this didn't happen. There is a very clear law that requires employers to provide separate changing facilities for male and female employees in the workplace. Based on evidence that Dr Upton gave in terms of the date of transitioning, no Gender Recognition Certificate (GRC) was in place when these events occurred. But since the Supreme Court decision this April, namely that even a GRC does not give a blanket legal right for men in possession of one to use a female-only facility, this argument will be difficult to apply. The management of NHS Fife has made Peggie's life a misery and wasted a huge amount of public money defending the indefensible. Bearing in mind how strapped for cash the NHS is, I hope they are severely reprimanded for what they have forced her to endure. We know that with cases against those who commit heresy regarding gender ideology, the process itself is the punishment. Sandie Peggie has been tortured for 18 months by her employers because a biological male decided to encroach upon her personal space. For 30 years, this woman has worked hard under the most stressful of circumstances. She had an unblemished record, which she has now reclaimed as a result of these spurious and vindictive allegations being dropped. Although Peggie is clearly mightily relived at no longer having the cloud of these very serious allegations hanging over her, the case and the sadistic treatment of the hard-working public servant will act as a warning to others who dare to speak out about the harms of gender ideology in the workplace, particularly when it involves a colleague of a higher rank. Despite this, the gender house of cards is falling, particularly since the Supreme Court decision in April, brought by a fine group of Scottish feminists, but also because the general public is now becoming aware of the ridiculousness of the notion that a person can simply change sex. As NHS Fife's equality and human rights lead officer Isla Bumba, who originally advised management that Dr Upton should be allowed to use the female changing room, told the ongoing tribunal yesterday: 'If someone says that they are trans, I would believe that they are trans,' having already admitted that she had no idea whether Dr Upton had undergone any surgery, hormonal treatment, or even made an effort to 'look like a woman'. In the light of this disgraceful witch hunt against Peggie, I hope that human resources departments and individuals everywhere charged with upholding actual anti-discrimination measures in the workplace will take note. They must adhere to the laws of the land confirmed by the Supreme Court – and not Stonewall's made-up rules. They must not bow and scrape to bullies and, instead, must protect and defend the rights of women to have a safe space when getting changed and in other situations that require single-sex facilities. I don't understand why those like Dr Upton, and their numerous trans activist allies, cannot see why taking off their clothes in front of a woman would cause discomfort and fear. Why do these people think feminists fought decades ago for female-only facilities and services? When single-sex facilities were created, very few people suggested it was outrageous or that it meant that all men were being painted as potential rapists. And yet many transgender activists claim that unless we let any man who claims to be a woman inside a single-sex facility, we are calling them a rapist. It is simply a matter of upholding women's safety and dignity. The tribunal continues, despite a number of experts in workplace discrimination and the law relating to equality law assuming it would collapse in light of Peggie being cleared of wrongdoing. But this clown show of a case will surely be a lesson for all employers, as well as public institutions such as universities, police forces, and governmental departments in implementing laws and policy as dictated by bullying trans activists. Putting a woman who has done no wrong whatsoever through hell and back in order to appease a biological male who demands to be recognised as female is not only cruel on a deeply personal level, but also costly in other ways. To date, this case has been fought with £220,000 of public money, and for the majority of the public, without our consent.
