Woman Receives £36k Following Claim of Christmas Party Harassment

Fernanda Hermosilla complained of “unwanted and inappropriate physical contact” by an employee during a Christmas party in Belfast in December 2022. Following an investigation and disciplinary process, with which she was not satisfied, Ms Hermosilla lodged a claim with the Industrial Tribunal. Ultimately, Ms Hermosilla agreed to settle the claim for £36,000 with £21,000 paid by the alleged harasser, the employee, and £15,000 by her employer. There was no admission of liability within the terms of the agreement.  The Equality Commission represented the Claimant.

Ms Hermosilla commenced employment with the Northern Ireland Human Rights Commission (NIHRC) in 2022 and attended a staff Christmas dinner in December 2022 at which she said the harassment occurred. Ms Hermosilla stated she had been going to speak to another colleague when she “felt someone grabbing me from behind and pulling me, as if to make me sit on his lap”. Ms Hermosilla stated that she felt mortified and was embarrassed as she had not been working for NIHRC for very long and did not know her other colleagues well at that stage.

When she returned to work, her employer informed her that an investigation had commenced into the events at the Christmas party following a complaint from another employee, who had witnessed the alleged incident. During the investigation, Ms Hermosilla told her employer about an earlier incident of inappropriate touching, which had occurred a few weeks prior to the Christmas dinner, involving the same employee, at a non-work event in a Belfast nightclub.

Ms Hermosilla was reluctant to make a complaint because she had just commenced her new role with the NIHRC. Ms Hermosilla stated, “I was on probation, I didn’t know this person. I thought he might make my life hard at work, that he might give me the silent treatment”.

During the investigation, Ms Hermosilla said she believed her employer did not communicate clearly with her about either the outcome or the disciplinary action taken. She believed the employee would not be returning to work, however, she was subsequently informed that he would be returning. Ms Hermosilla also informed her employer that the employee had also made verbal comments to her of a racial and political nature, which she found inappropriate. This was also investigated by the employer.

The employee apologised for any upset caused and, as part of the settlement, Ms Hermosilla and the employee have agreed to put the matter behind them and continue working together going forward, including face-to-face if necessary. They both agreed that mediation was not needed.

This case highlights the need for employers to ensure that the safety and dignity of employees at Christmas parties is taken seriously.

Employers need to ensure they have policies and procedures in place to deal with such incidents to ensure that a fair and reasonable process is conducted. Failure to do so could be costly to both the employer and individual employees who can be named as Respondents in tribunal proceedings and face personal liability for their actions.

In the absence of such policies and procedures, employers should refer to the LRA Code of Practice on Disciplinary and Grievance procedures, which clearly sets out the steps that should be followed. Failure to properly implement the steps required could result in a 25% uplift to any award made by the tribunal.

The main considerations for employers are:

1. Ensure you operate with the necessary policies and procedures to deal with allegations of sexual harassment;
2. Ensure that an independent, fair and reasonable process is followed;
3. Ensure that all individuals involved in the process are updated at key stages; and
4. Issue reminders to employees prior to work events, informing them of what is expected of them during these events, as well as providing regular training on equality policies including bullying and harassment training.

This article has been produced for general information purposes and further advice should be sought from a professional advisor.

Please contact our Employment team at Cleaver Fulton Rankin for further advice or information.

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