Firefighter wins human rights safety ruling

Firefighter wins human rights safety ruling

A firefighter has won £80,000 in damages after an employment tribunal found he was unfairly dismissed after raising health and safety concerns. FBU member Christopher Bennett, who has arthritis, was fired for gross misconduct for sending an email to colleagues asking whether the reclining chairs provided at work were caused back pain. Greater Manchester Fire Service had insisted he use a chair he was concerned was injuring his back on nightshifts at work. Three hundred of the £400 chairs were brought in to replace beds in Greater Manchester's 41 fire stations in 2006. In 2007, three firefighters were disciplined after they refused to sleep on the reclining chairs. The tribunal found Mr Bennett's right to freedom of expression under the Human Rights Act had been breached and that his dismissal was unfair. The firefighter, who was sacked in 2008 after 25 years of service, was among a number of firefighters who found the new £400 chairs uncomfortable, the tribunal heard. A failure to address his concerns led Mr Bennett to send an email to watch managers across the county asking if they or their colleagues were suffering with the chairs, an action that resulted in his dismissal. The tribunal found that the email was of political and public interest in that firefighters should be alert and fit to go about their business of fighting fires and effecting rescues. It went on to find that Mr Bennett was seeking in his own way to protect public safety. Thompsons Solicitors, the law firm brought in by FBU to represent Mr Bennett, secured an out-of-court settlement of £80,000 - more than the statutory cap for these types of cases. Steve Shelton, the FBU official who had represented Mr Bennett during his disciplinary hearings, said: 'To lose his job for speaking out about his concerns for safety was a sanction too far. It's reassuring to know that the law recognises this and that our legal advisers were able to successfully argue that the Human Rights Act be applied to Chris's case.'

FBU news release. Thompsons Solicitors news release. Manchester Evening News. BBC News Online.