Alpha Properties Boss Sexually Harassed Employee by Asking Her to Join a Work Trip For “All the Fun Stuff”

In the case of Ms Frances MacDonald v Alpha Property Management Services Ltd (1) and Dilawar Khan (2), Ms MacDonald received multiple inappropriate and sexual messages from her Alpha Properties boss that impacted her mental health. The Employment Tribunal upheld claims of harassment related to sex and sexual harassment at work, as well as wrongful dismissal.

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The Facts of Ms Frances MacDonald v Alpha Property Management Services Ltd (1) and Dilawar Khan (2)

Claimant’s Initial Contact with Alpha Properties Boss

Ms Frances MacDonald (“The Claimant”) applied for a job with Alpha Property Management Services Ltd (“The First Respondent”) in February 2021. She joined as a part-time personal assistant and property manager, reporting to Mr Dilawar Khan (“The Second Respondent”).

Initially, the second respondent told the claimant that he had received 70 applications for the role and that some were compelling. Nevertheless, during a telephone call between the two on 28 February, the second respondent asked the claimant questions about her religion and if she had children.

On 6 March, a further exchange of WhatsApp messages took place. During the exchange, the second respondent said he needed to see “passion and commitment” before he would consider hiring her. On 16 April, the second respondent invited the claimant to a face-to-face interview.

Over the subsequent few weeks, multiple WhatsApp exchanges took place between the claimant and the second respondent. Many of these were not strictly work-related and had a sexual undertone. The second respondent would often contact the claimant late in the evenings.

One message from the second respondent on 18 April stated: “Don’t get me wrong I love beautiful women but the thinking and logic is very different to men [laughing emoji] I have a very high IQ, so I’m like 200 miles per hour and my PAs struggle to keep up…”,

Claimant Continues Receiving Inappropriate Messages from Alpha Properties Boss

The claimant attended an in-person interview with the second respondent on 21 April, after which she got positive feedback via WhatsApp. Further WhatsApp exchanges took place over the following weeks.

On 22 April, the second respondent sent messages stating “Right a good, sexy song and let’s see… I might sponsor [3 dollar signs] if I like the sound of it…Haha” and “We will have to go to Turkey together…I have an apartment down south in the blue lagoons and we can do all the fun stuff [tongue out emoji]”.

After attending a second interview with the second respondent on 23 April, the claimant was offered the job on 26 April. Before commencing work on 4 May, the claimant and second respondent had further WhatsApp exchanges. Messages from the second respondent include:

  1. “I need sex when I’m stressed…”,
  2. “… when restaurants open… I will treat you to a nice curry [tongue out emoji]”, and,
  3. “Wives are very possessive of their business minded husband as they feel they are surrounded by beautiful women…So best not to tell everything and just enjoy life”.

The claimant told the tribunal later that she felt these to be inappropriate messages. She said she had felt compelled to respond in a light-hearted way as she did not have an employment contract in place with the first respondent at that time.

Boss’ Treatment Impacts Claimant’s Mental Health

The claimant’s contract of employment was agreed with the second respondent on 3 May, with 4th May as the commencement date. Her first few days at work comprised a lot of training.

On her first day, the claimant was “talked at” for seven hours and told not to take too many notes and waste the second respondent’s time. On the second day, whilst inspecting properties, the second respondent told the claimant not to write things down but to listen and remember them.

During her employment with the first respondent, the claimant received a lot of criticism from the second respondent. Most of this was, again, sent via WhatsApp outside of work hours. These complaints included the claimant not actioning tasks immediately during the day, agreeing to personal commitments outside of work, and not responding to messages quickly enough.

On 14 May, the second respondent called the claimant at 7:30 pm. After criticising her for 30 minutes and asking how she could forget things, he “wasn’t sure this is going to work”. This treatment reduced the claimant to tears. The following day, the second respondent complained at 5:00 pm that the claimant had not responded to a message sent at 12:43 pm.

The claimant’s mental health began to suffer significantly owing to the second respondent’s behaviour. By 21 May, she was having difficulty sleeping, consistently breaking down in tears, and having suicidal thoughts. The claimant was also having migraines and said that she felt trapped.

Claimant Feels Bullied and Sexually Harassed by Alpha Properties Boss

The claimant submitted a letter of resignation to the first respondent on 24 May. She stated that this was due to “bullying, derogatory comments and harassment”.

The second respondent continued to message the claimant. He demanded needing to speak to her immediately despite knowing that she was ill, and threatened to hire someone else if she did not respond.

On 25 May, the claimant sought help for her mental health. She received a sick note from her GP, signing her off work for two weeks. In the meantime, the second respondent dismissed the claimant via WhatsApp message. He demanded the immediate return of the company property and threatened to report the matter to the police. The tone of the messages became distinctly threatening and aggressive.

The claimant brought claims of harassment related to sex, sexual harassment, and wrongful dismissal against the first and second respondents.

The Employment Tribunal’s Ruling Against Alpha Properties Boss

The case involving the Alpha Properties boss was heard at Bury St Edmunds Employment Tribunal by Employment Judge S Moore. On the facts of the case, the tribunal upheld the claimant’s claims.

The tribunal held that the inappropriate messages sent by the second respondent constituted sexual harassment and harassment related to sex. They amounted to unwanted conduct and their purpose or effect was to “violate [the claimant’s] dignity or create an intimidating, hostile, degrading, humiliating or offensive environment” for her. The inappropriate messages both related to the claimant’s sex (specifically asking whether she had children) and were of a sexual nature.

In addition, the tribunal upheld the claimant’s claim of wrongful dismissal. The second respondent had based the dismissal on a serious breach of contract due to her unauthorised absence on 24 May. Given that the claimant had told the second respondent that she was ill and would be unable to attend work, the tribunal said that this submission was “clearly a hopeless one”.

The case will be listed for a subsequent hearing to consider the amount of the claimant’s compensation.

How Can Redmans Solicitors Help with Sexual Harassment Cases

Experiencing sexual harassment at work can have some devastating consequences, especially on an employee’s mental health. Our employment law specialist team has experience in dealing with such cases and bringing claims against those responsible. To discuss your own situation and ascertain whether you may have an eligible claim, contact us now to arrange an initial consultation.

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  • Give us a call at 020 3397 3603; or
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