Is this unfair dismissal?

Hi Folks. I work part-time as a receptionist/telephonist, jobshare with another girl, 2.5 days per week, also there are 3 full timers. My employer said one of us part timers was being made redundant. One of the full-timers has now left, they have refused to fill that post with another part timer, they are still going ahead with making a part timer redundant and then employing a full timer whom they will have to train. Also we are all supposed to do the same job yet my manager has actually said to me thats its not worth teacing me anything as I'm only part time and the full timers have been taught how to do things that the part timers have not. Any help on this would be very much appreciated, thanks

There is certainly potential that this is both unfair dismissal and indirect sex discrimination. With indirect sex discrimination you do not need a comparator and you do not need to prove that a man would be or is being treated differently - the basis of such a claim is that the employers actions disproportionately impact on women because women are more likley to want part time or flexible owrking hours. However, to make such a claim without experience you would almost certainly need some legal support / advice, and unless you are in a union or have legal insurance you may have no options other than no-win no-fee, who may be unwilling to take on a case that is unlikely to net a large award. You could try if you have no other option - or you could get working and submit a claim yourself if the employer refuses to budge, although you shouldn't underestimate that it will take work on your part!

But you would have to point this out to the employer and submit a grievance or an appeal against your redundancy first with the employer, and attempt to resolve the matter with them. They may reconsider if they realise that you knw your rights. You might try googling indirect sex discrimination to get more information. And leaving a copy of last Saturdays paper truned the the right page (Doctor win £4.5 million, would be the right page!). Don't delude yourself that you would, even if you won, get even a fraction of that - but employers minds do get concentrated on matters when things like this happen

Hi SarEl. Many thanks for your reply. I do have access to legal advice through house insurance and I will start a grievance whenever I am next called in but I want to get in writing that they will give me a good reference first. The advice I was given was to state they were breaking the part time workers regulations by only targeting part time workers for redundancy rather than all of the reception staff but now a full timer has left there is no need to make a part timer redundant at all. It seems they are determined to get rid of a part timer and are using redundancy as a means to do it. I will quote indirect sex discrimination in the grievance as well, thanks

It isn't going to be a gold-mine - but indirect discrimination is worth more! Just don't leave it too long - a written agreement to give a good reference isn't legally binding anyway. The quickest way to solve the problem from their point of view is to refuse to give a reference at all! No employer has to give a reference.