In the case of Mr A Finn v The British Bung Manufacturing Company Limited Mr Finn was employed as an electrician between 22 September 1997 and 25 May 2021. Upon the latter date, he was dismissed from his employment without notice. He complained that he was a victim of sexual harassment, due to comments made about his lack of hair, including being called a “bald c***” by factory supervisor Jamie King during an argument in 2019.
Describing the argument, Mr Finn told the panel: “I was working on a machine that I had to cover awaiting specialist repair.
“The covers were taken off, and it was apparent that Jamie King had done this.
“When I spoke to him about it, he began to call me a stupid bald c*** and threatened to deck me.”
The argument with Mr King, who is 30 years younger than Mr Finn, left the claimant “fearful for my personal safety”.
The tribunal said of the bald comment: “It was a violation of the claimant’s dignity, it created an intimidating environment for him, and it related to the claimant’s sex.”
“In our judgment, there is a connection between the word “bald” on the one hand and the protected characteristic of sex on the other. As all three members of the Tribunal will vouchsafe, baldness is much more prevalent in men than women. We find it to be inherently related to sex. (In contrast, we accept that baldness affects (predominantly) adult males of all ages so is inherently not a characteristic of age).”
Mr Finn is in line for compensation after winning claims of unfair dismissal, wrongful dismissal and being subjected to sex harassment.
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