LECTURERS Andy Murray and Lesley Holmes were finally forced last week to give up their three-year fight for reinstatement at Cricklade College, Hampshire.
An Employment Appeals tribunal refused to reverse an industrial tribunal decision that they had not been victimised in 1998.
But the tribunal did leave them feeling partially vindicated. Chairman Alan Wilkie QC criticised the then principal Elizabeth Blakemore for failing to hold meetings she had promised with the two lecturers. Mr Wilkie even said that the members of the tribunal panel “may disagree with the industrial tribunal decision” as individuals. But to overturn the decision they would have to show that it was perverse, he said, and it was not.
In 1996 police were called in to investigate the use Cricklade College had made of European Social Fund money. Principal Richard Evans was suspended and two senior managers, closely involved with the deal, took early retirement. An investigation by PricewaterhouseCoopers found the college had not been providing the services the European Social Fund was paying for, and that repayment could cost the college pound;1.7 million.
Two years later, college authorities accused Mr Murray, then branch secretary of the lecturers’ union NATFHE at the college, of leaking the story to the press. Mr Murray and his colleague Ms Holmes were later selected for redundancy. They accused the college of victimisation. An industrial tribunal rejected this, and NATFHE appealed.
This week Mr Murray said: “Of course I am disappointed. But we were right to appeal. The college’s attempt to put a lid on the scandal failed utterly. The managers responsible for the mess have now gone.”
Cricklade’s present principal, Dr Tom Johnson, said: “The redundancies were a long time ago. The college has learnt a lot from those dark days.” He said that the redundancies were fair and there was no victimisation. The college’s lawyer, James Tayler, had told NATFHE he would seek costs if the tribunal found in his favour. After listening to Mr Wilkie’s comments, Mr Tayler made no application for costs.
Mr Murray now works for Steel Partnerships, a subsidiary of the Iron and Steel Trades Confederation that helps steelworkers face redundancy. He feels his own experiences with redundancy are valuable in his new job. Ms Holmes is personnel manager for an engineering company.
