Reduced pay on phased return

Case 16: The facts

Mrs Williams worked for the Home Office for over 20 years, but became ill after an act of racial harassment by a colleague. Her employer had some discretion in how its sick policy was implemented, but Williams was put onto reduced pay some time into her sick leave.

She then advised her employer that she would be fit to return to work. A "phased return" to work was arranged, but she was told she would only receive full pay for the hours she worked on her return - for the remaining hours, she would be paid according to the sick pay provisions.

Williams, who did not return to work, claimed that the decisions not to pay her full pay were discriminatory. A tribunal found that the first decision (not to pay her sick pay while she was off sick) was discriminatory, as full pay had been paid on previous occasions to two white colleagues. However, the decision not to pay full pay on her phased return was not discriminatory.

The ruling

The EAT upheld the tribunal's findings. Just because a manager had made a decision that was discriminatory on one occasion, this did not mean that a subsequent decision must also be discriminatory.

Williams v Home Office UKEAT/0525/04