Man given £21,000 because his new desk wasn't far back enough in the office
A man was awarded money after he sued his former employer because of the desk he was given to work from.
Former estate agent Nicholas Walker won over £21,000 after he says his bosses gave him a desk that did not reflect his seniority in the workplace.
The 53-year-old quit his post at Robsons Estate Agents in Hertfordshire after his concerns about his desk were not taken seriously.
As a manager, he was miffed when he was moved branches to then be told he’d be sitting at a ‘middle’ desk instead of the ‘back’ one that managers usually used.
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Walker then became ‘upset’, as he felt his experience and position was being ‘undermined’ by this ‘low status’ desk of his.
His boss, Daniel Young, reacted to the upset by saying he couldn’t believe a 'f***ing 53-year-old man' was 'making a fuss' about a desk of all things.
The argument became heated, with Walker quitting over the ordeal, and Young refusing a request to reconsider the resignation.
Walker has since sued the company and won £21,411 in compensation for unfair constructive dismissal.
According to the tribunal, it was found that it was only logical that Walker had felt demoted at the workplace due to the desk status, calling it a breach of workplace laws.
Employment Judge Aku Reindorf said at the time: “From [Mr Walker's] point of view, finding out that Mr Gooder was sitting at the back desk and he would be sitting at the middle desk amounted to being told that he would be assistant manager and Mr Gooder would be branch manager.
“This was a logical conclusion for him to draw in circumstances where communication with him about the logistics of the Rickmansworth move had been poor...”
It heard how Walker was the branch manager in 2017 in Watford before being moved in 2022 to Chorleywood, and then being asked to move back the following year. It was upon his return that he was told he would share the branch manager role with a junior colleague, which had not been discussed with Walker prior to his return.
The back desk he usually sat at had a 'practical and symbolic' significance as that is where the books and ledgers were kept for the branch manager to see.
The back desk is also where the junior colleague, Matthew Gooden, was stationed, and when Walker returned, he was instead given a middle desk.
He believed that this had designated him the role of 'assistant manager', and in retaliation, he messaged Young to say: “I am not going back...and sitting in the middle.”
At this, Young asked an external HR service for help on how to navigate this issue and was allegedly told to 'express disappointment' that Walker threatened to quit.
It also suggested he see if there was a 'genuine reason' for his upset and even consider disciplinary measures if he refused his middle desk. However, by the time Young had arrived at the site, he was 'angry and upset', having convinced himself Walker was ready to throw in the towel and leave.
From there, the meeting 'escalated quickly' and the tribunal heard that Young had heard how Young had allegedly said one of two things.
Either 'a man of your age' or 'a f***ing 53-year-old man' was making a fuss of the desk situation.
When Walker threatened to walk, Young apparently said to him to 'go on then' and walked him back to his desk to draft his own resignation letter.
When two days passed, Walker attempted to retract his resignation, but Young did not return the call and instead brought his leaving date earlier and paid him in lieu of notice.
In the end, the tribunal found that Walker was correct to see the back desk as a 'demotion'.
the judge added: “The Tribunal finds [it was]...conduct that was likely to destroy or seriously damage the relationship of trust and confidence.
“Either becoming assistant manager or becoming joint manager with Mr Gooder would have amounted to a demotion by comparison to the role he was performing at Chorleywood and that which he had performed at Rickmansworth previously, since at both offices he had been the sole manager in charge of the branch.
“Mr Young lost his temper and did not manage the situation in an appropriate manner, in part because the HR advice he had received had exacerbated the crisis.”
Britt Jones