In Mr B Moore v Sean Pong Tyres Ltd, Sean Pong Tyres is a small firm which recycles and exports tyres. Used vehicle tyres were brought them into the yard on lorries and were then sorted and graded by the team. The team of Tyre Graders comprised Mr Moore, Mr Desmond Owusu and two colleagues, both called Eric. The owner and manager was Mr Sean Frimpong – often referred to as Mr Pong.
Mr Moore resigned on 19 April 2021 after a period off sick with depression. He says this was the result of a dispute with Mr Owusu, and that Mr Owusu verbally abused him, calling him on one or more occasions an old, gay, white man. Mr Moore is a white man in his early fifties, but is not gay, as Mr Owusu knew, so the word ‘gay’ can only have been a term of abuse. Mr Owusu is a younger and describes himself as a black African man of Ghanaian origin, as is Mr Frimpong.
The tribunal heard that Mr Moore and Mr Owusu had worked together for a number of years and had previously been on good terms, with Mr Owusu at one point having been in a relationship with Mr Moore’s sister. The tribunal also heard that there was a “pecking order” at work and a “small indication of the pecking order” was that, during the first Covid lockdown, Mr Moore was furloughed while Mr Owusu and other colleagues remained at work.
The tribunal stated that it was difficult to determine exactly when the relationship between Mr Moore and Mr Owusu broke down, but that the company’s case was that any abuse was “just banter”. However, the panel found that language used by Mr Owusu when referring to Mr Moore – including calling him a c**t in Ghanian – amounted to harassment.
Judge Fowell said: “Although it is possible that two men in a robust working environment might use abusive language to each other without any bad feeling, there is a risk that it tips over into aggression. We conclude that that is what happened here.”
The panel heard that Mr Owusu had told his manager that he “enjoyed taunting Mr Moore” and made no attempt to hide the fact that he was doing so.
The panel said that they were satisfied the harassment was related to race and age and Mr Moore was awarded a total of £7,486.00 for unfair dismissal, and £14,541.21 compensation for discrimination.
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