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Cashier not invited to work drinks given £74,000 compensation

Aspers Casino
Aspers Casino

Failing to invite a colleague to work drinks is victimisation, a tribunal has ruled as a casino worker is handed £75,000 in compensation.

Cashier Rita Leher, 51, claimed she felt "shunned" by colleagues at Aspers casino in Stratford, east London, and was the only one not invited to cocktail bar Las Iguanas for drinks.

Fellow cashiers also '"insensitively" discussed the social event in front of her, the tribunal heard.

Ms Leher, who has since left the company, has now been awarded £74,113 in compensation after a tribunal judge ruled that deliberately excluding a colleague from work drinks amounts to victimisation.

Excluding an employee is a "detriment at work" as they "lose the opportunity to bond with colleagues", Employment Judge Sarah Moor said in her ruling.

Ms Leher, who is of mixed black African heritage, also won claims of unfair dismissal, race and age discrimination.

Ms Leher began working at the casino in November 2011. It is the second biggest casino in Britain and employs around 560 staff.

Colleagues 'did not want to socialise with someone who complained'

The tribunal heard she had seen many cash desk colleagues promoted over the years, none of whom were black or mixed heritage and all of whom were younger than her.

She had been repeatedly rejected or ignored after applying for higher positions within the company, the tribunal heard.

Her exclusion from the drinks event was because colleagues "did not wish to socialise with someone who had complained of discrimination", the tribunal panel concluded.

Ruling on the victimisation claim, Judge Moor said: "We unanimously agree that being excluded from discussions at work about a social occasion amongst colleagues when one would normally be included would subject an employee to a detriment at work.

"A reasonable employee would consider that such exclusion was to their disadvantage because they had lost the opportunity to bond with colleagues on that social occasion.

"The occasion was sufficiently linked to work by the fact that it was amongst work colleagues and was discussed about at work and would provide the opportunity for team bonding.

"We unanimously agree that this was because Ms Leher had complained about victimisation."

Ms Leher won £74,113.65 in compensation for injury to feelings and loss of overtime for her successful claims of unlawful victimisation, unfair dismissal, race and age discrimination.