Manager who insulted her bosses awarded £29k - October TWBM article

In my Tunbridge Wells Business magazine column this month, I thought it would be interesting to reflect on a recent employment tribunal case, whereby an employee was compensated, following verbally insulting her bosses. The tribunal ruled that calling a boss a “d**khead” is not necessarily a sackable offence, finding office manager, Kerrie Herbert was unfairly dismissed.

The incident occurred during a heated meeting in May 2022. Herbert, who earned £40k a year at Main Group Services, became upset after finding documents about the cost of employing her, which she felt implied that the business was looking to remove her role. When her manager, Thomas Swannell, raised performance issues with Herbert, she retorted that she had only stayed at the job “because of you two d**kheads.” Swannell immediately fired her on the spot.

However, the employment tribunal judge, Sonia Boyes, ruled the company had not acted reasonably. While the language was “not acceptable,” it was a one-off comment made in the heat of the moment and did not amount to gross misconduct. The judge found the firm failed to follow its own disciplinary procedure, which required a prior warning for insulting language, and that only more serious threats justified a summary dismissal.

As a result, Herbert was awarded over £15k in compensation for unfair dismissal, plus an additional £14k towards her legal costs. So here is my advice for business owners following this ruling:

• Always distinguish between misconduct and gross misconduct

• Have a clear disciplinary policy and follow it rigorously

• Never fire in the heat of the moment - prioritise process over emotion

• Train your managers extensively

• Document everything

If you need advice or guidance on any employment or HR challenges, please feel free to contact me directly on 01892 726060 or sophie@theforrestgroup.co.uk