A Council Worker’s Allegation of Harassment and the Employment Tribunal Case
A council worker has made a shocking accusation against her colleagues, claiming they were spying on her while she was on sick leave. The incident came to light after she noticed them “continuously” walking past her home through footage from a Ring doorbell camera. This led to a legal battle with her employer, the Dudley Metropolitan Borough Council, near Birmingham.
The case involved Debra Dugmore, who joined the authority’s homelessness prevention and response team in October 2016. She took time off work due to an immune response following the Covid-19 vaccine. Over the course of almost a year, she suffered from a combination of urinary tract infections (UTIs), back pain, and nausea.
According to Dugmore, her line manager, Hayley Rowley, became “rogue” from the start of her sick leave. She claimed that her colleagues were walking past her house while she was absent from work. Dugmore showed the tribunal a 15-second clip from her doorbell camera, stating that it left her feeling “spied on” because her bosses did not believe she was genuinely ill.
However, the employment judge dismissed her claim, citing that she had not been able to prove who was walking past her house. The judge stated that Dugmore’s belief that she was being “watched” was “entirely a matter of speculation” on her part.
During the hearing, it was revealed that on more than one occasion, Ms. Rowley told Dugmore that a colleague “had walked down her street to get her steps in.” Dugmore alleged that she captured video footage of two colleagues walking past her home in August, but the panel could not identify them.
The judgment noted that Dugmore felt the incidents were not innocuous, as colleagues “continuously” walked past her house on a quiet street, even though there were green spaces nearby for walking. She argued that this behavior contributed to her increasing withdrawal from activities outside the home.
One of her colleagues explained that she regularly goes walking and sometimes walks near the road where Dugmore lives. On the day Dugmore claimed to have seen her walking past, the colleague was attending a family meal in Warrington, Cheshire.
Dugmore returned to work in January 2022 but resigned in April of that year. She took the council to the tribunal over the alleged “spying” and other incidents. She accused the authority of harassment, particularly over the claims that colleagues had walked past her house and that Ms. Rowley had told her that a co-worker had been “getting her steps in” by walking past her home.
Employment Judge David Faulkner concluded that Dugmore’s claims based on the doorbell footage failed on the facts, as she could not prove that the people walking past her house were her colleagues. He acknowledged that Dugmore may have felt the remarks made by Ms. Rowley were “unwanted,” but he emphasized that the idea of being watched was speculative.
The judge pointed out that there was no need for Ms. Rowley to arrange for Dugmore to be watched, given their frequent contact. Additionally, there was no evidence suggesting that Ms. Rowley doubted the genuineness of Dugmore’s absence. In fact, Dugmore had informed Ms. Rowley about various activities she was doing, such as visiting a relative’s house, without any indication of impropriety.
The judge also highlighted that sharing information about other team members was common in conversations between the two close colleagues. Based on these points, the tribunal did not accept that the conduct was unwanted.
This case raises important questions about workplace behavior, trust, and the interpretation of actions that may seem suspicious. It underscores the challenges faced by employees who feel harassed or misunderstood by their colleagues and employers.
Other recent cases involving similar issues include:
- A nurse claiming unlawful harassment over a trans colleague’s presence in the women’s changing room at a Fife hospital.
- One of Britain’s youngest councillors claiming she was bullied into quitting Labour over minicab CCTV concerns.
- The relentless harassment from Councillor Ford leaving Torridge Council’s legal head fearing for her safety, leading her to install surveillance cameras at home.
- A care home unfairly dismissing a worker over unauthorized work hours and a trip to the vet.
- An NHS decision to sack a cleaner without recognizing her disability status, as ruled by a tribunal.