Flexible Working Requests: The clue to success is in the title

Jennifer Ferrario has successfully defended a claim for sex discrimination and constructive unfair dismissal in the Leeds Employment Tribunal against an NHS Trust in Yorkshire. The claimant  had been diagnosed with severe mental health issues during maternity leave, and upon returning to work she submitted a flexible working request to change her working hours to accommodate child care. The difficulty for the trust was that she had requested a work pattern that did not fit with clinical needs. During the hearing, Jennifer highlighted the reasonable steps that the NHS managers took to try and reach a resolution with the claimant and her constant refusal to try and compromise. It was a challenging hearing because the claimant is a vulnerable person and having resigned from the Trust earlier this year, she has been unable to bring herself to apply for any other work. Jennifer carefully explored the evidence with the witnesses and the claimant, culminating in a unanimous judgment that the claim had no merit,  and it was dismissed. Jennifer’s advice to both employers and employees when addressing a flexible work request is ‘the clue is in the title – approach the request in a flexible way, exploring all potential and suitable options and be proactive in trying to find a resolution.