A senior real estate agent who was furiously resigned after he had received an agency that he believed to have undermined his authority has won compensation against his employer.
Nicholas Walker, 53, felt 'upset' at Robson's Estate Agents in Hertfordshire after being told that he would be sitting at a 'middle' desk instead of the desk 'back' – usually where the manager is.
When Mr. Walker's boss heard about his opposition to the schemes, he said he could not believe that “a man his age” made a hassle “about where he would be.
But after he has now won his case in an employment tribunal, the ruling means senior employees who get an agency that they see as under their status can take successful legal steps.
Sitting near Junior Personnel in the office could lead 'logically' that more experienced employees have the feeling that they have been deficient or not being respected, the panel said.
As a result, this could 'destroy or seriously damage' their relationship with bosses.
The 53-year-old, who was also director of the company, submitted his resignation after a failure with his boss and is now ready for a payment after he has successfully sued the employer for unfair constructive dismissal.
The hearing, held in Watford, heard that Mr. Walker from 2017 was a branch manager at Robsons in Rickmansworth.
Nicholas Walker (photo) was asked to move the branch, but was 'upset' after being told that he would be sitting at a 'middle' desk instead of the desk 'back' – usually where the manager is sitting
Matthew Gooder (photo), a more junior colleague, sat at the 'Back' desk after the company had made a structural change without informing Mr Walker – leaving him 'upset'.
Sales director Daniel Young (photo) decided that Mr. Walker would share the role of branch manager with the less experienced colleague, but did not inform him
In 2022 he was moved to the nearby Chorleywood branch, but was asked in May 2023 to return because his replacement had resigned there.
Sales director Daniel Young decided that Mr. Walker would share the role of branch manager with a more junior colleague, but did not inform him.
The desk at the back of the Rickmansworth's office would have 'practical and symbolic' meaning, because it was always used by the branch manager and was where financial documents were stored.
But the Junior Colleague, Matthew Gooder, had already moved to the back desk by the time MR Walker arrived there, so that he left the middle agency left to sit.
Mr. Walker told the tribunal that he was 'upset' with this news, because it indicated that he would be only an 'assistant manager'.
He sent Mr Young and said, “I'm not going back … and is in the middle.”
Mr Young, who did not realize that the 'meaning' of the office nor understood how Mr. Walker was concerned about his status 'undermined', concluded that the broker had found work with a competitor.
He asked an external HR service for advice and was told that he expressed 'disappointment' that Mr. Walker said he would resign if he could not sit at a specific desk.
The agency at the back of the office in Rickmansworth (photo) would have “practical and symbolic” meaning, because it was always used by the branch manager and was where financial documents were stored
Mr. Young was also advised to consider whether there was a 'sincere reason' and that this could lead to a disciplinary issue if he refused to move.
By the time the business director arrived in Chorleywood to talk to Mr. Walker, he was 'angry and upset' and he had convinced himself that the broker would resign.
The tribunal discovered that their meeting 'quickly escalated' and the tribunal heard that Mr Young either said that he could not believe 'a man of your age' or 'AF ***** G 53-year-old man' made himself about a desk.
In the end, Mr. Walker threatened to resign and Mr Young told him 'then continued' and walked him back to his desk to write down his resignation.
Two days after the meeting, Mr. Walker tried to restore the situation and withdraw his resignation, but Mr. Young did not answer his phone call and instead his departure date was raised and he received payment instead of notification.
The tribunal concluded that Mr. Walker had been right to see the desk problem as a 'relegation'.
Employment judge Aku Reindorf said: 'From [Mr Walker’s] Point of View, discovered that Mr. Gooder was sitting at the rear desk and that he would be at the middle desk, was told that he would be assistant manager and Mr. Gooder would be branch manager.
'This was a logical conclusion for him to draw in circumstances in which communication with him about the logistics of the Rickmansworth movement had been bad.
The tribunal concluded that Mr. Walker had been right to see the desk problem as a 'relegation' (stock image)
'The tribunal finds [it was] Behavior that would probably destroy or seriously damage the relationship between trust and trust.
'Either becoming an assistant manager or becoming a joint manager at Mr. Gooder, would have been a relegation compared to the role he played at Chorleywood and what he had previously performed at Rickmansworth, because he was the only manager at both offices who was in charge of the branch.
“Mr. Young lost his patience and did not manage the situation in a suitable way, partly because the HR advice that he had received had worsened the crisis.”
Mr. Walker's claim on age discrimination was rejected and his compensation will be decided at a later date.
