A senior manager overseeing ports projects valued up to £150 million has successfully won an unfair dismissal case against Associated British Ports (ABP). Sahir Rahim was dismissed after being overheard loudly criticizing his line manager, Ben Hodgkin, outside ABP's London headquarters.
Rahim, who managed contract and cost matters for ABP from January 2020, felt his role was diminished after raising an internal governance issue in March 2023. He alleged that Hodgkin began to reduce his responsibilities, set unrealistic deadlines, and required him to work over 37 hours a week. A meeting on July 5, 2023, where Rahim perceived changes to his role and was warned against undermining colleagues, preceded the incident.
Later that day, Rahim was speaking loudly to a junior colleague, Daniel Landi, on the street outside the ABP building. He made disparaging remarks about Hodgkin and the company's Asset team, questioning Hodgkin's knowledge of contracts and stating he could take Hodgkin's job. Unbeknownst to Rahim, Hodgkin was emerging from a bike store and overheard the conversation. Hodgkin reported the incident to his own superior, describing himself as "genuinely upset."
Rahim was subsequently subjected to a disciplinary process and suspended. While he initially could not recall the conversation, he later accepted it was inappropriate. ABP concluded Rahim had committed gross misconduct but issued a final written warning, acknowledging the stressful situation and long hours he had been working.
However, on the same day he received the written warning, Rahim was informed that ABP was considering dismissing him under an "other dismissals" policy due to a perceived breakdown in his relationship with management. Shortly after, Rahim went on sick leave due to work-related stress. ABP withheld contractual sick pay, citing a clause that allowed for its suspension during disciplinary processes, which they interpreted Rahim's appeal against the written warning to be part of.
An employment tribunal later found that ABP had acted in bad faith by withholding sick pay, using it as a "negotiating tool" and a "disciplinary measure." The tribunal also determined that Rahim's conduct on July 5, while blameworthy and contributing to the final written warning, did not justify ABP's decisions to withhold sick pay in bad faith or invoke the "other dismissals" policy. Rahim resigned in January 2024, arguing constructive dismissal, which the tribunal accepted.
The tribunal found that while Rahim's overhearing was blameworthy and contributed to the written warning, it did not warrant dismissal. It also ruled that withholding sick pay in bad faith and invoking the "other dismissals" policy were not justifiable consequences of Rahim's conduct. The amount of compensation Rahim will receive is to be determined at a later date. Other claims made by Rahim during the tribunal were unsuccessful.