A Co-op lorry driver has been awarded £19,042 in compensation after a female colleague accused her of 'flashing' her breasts to gain favor and performing sexual favors. Charlotte Brooks, an HGV driver, claimed that the bullying and harassment by Kerry Dawson occurred over a two-year period.
Brooks began working for Co-op as an apprentice lorry driver in January 2022 and is now a fully qualified HGV driver. During a training course for their Class 1 HGV license in the summer of 2022, Dawson allegedly told driving instructors that Brooks would perform oral sex to get what she wanted. Brooks reported this comment to her manager, expressing significant distress.
The situation escalated in October 2024 when Dawson sent Brooks a voice note stating, "Just because she has tits she thinks she can flash them at anybody and anyone will do anything for her." Brooks filed a grievance, which Co-op investigated and found Dawson's conduct between June 2022 and October 2024 to be inappropriate.
Dawson was initially dismissed, but her appeal was successful, and the decision was overturned in favor of a written warning. An appeal manager cited 'historical conflict' between the two women and procedural flaws in the original disciplinary hearing, including a lack of relevant information and the presence of hearsay evidence. Brooks was informed that Dawson would return to the workplace in January 2025 without any discussion of safeguarding arrangements.
Following this news, Brooks experienced significant distress and took time off work due to stress. An employment tribunal later ruled that Dawson's comments amounted to sexual harassment and direct sex discrimination. Employment Judge Paula Volkmer noted that the appeal process had not adequately considered the seriousness of Dawson's conduct and its impact on Brooks.
Judge Volkmer stated that the appeal manager's decision to overturn the dismissal, despite Dawson's admissions, appeared to minimize the sexual harassment. The judge suggested that if the conduct had involved members of the opposite sex, it might have been taken more seriously. The tribunal also found that Co-op failed to implement safeguarding measures for Brooks until after she lodged a complaint. These events left Brooks feeling humiliated and anxious, requiring therapy until at least September 2025.