News
Justice at last for female employees
SOME one hundred female employees and former employees of Pembrokeshire County Council are celebrating this week having successfully pursued a claim for Equal Pay Discrimination against the local authority, which is set to cost the council hundreds of thousands of pounds.
Claimants included hard working care workers, cleaners, dinner ladies and lollipop ladies began their action in 2012, when formal complaints of discrimination to Pembrokeshire County Council were completely rebuffed by the authority’s senior staff.
The ladies however were not to be put off and contacted solicitor Mr Chris Benson of Leigh Day & Co, London, who after considering the matter agreed to take on the case. Leigh Day had previously succeeded in winning a landmark case on Equal Pay in the High Court whilst representing female workers of Birmingham City Council.
An open meeting was held at the Cleddau Bridge Hotel, Pembroke Dock, when more employees who believed they had been discriminated against came forward and following this the case was pursued by Leigh Day which has resulted in this week’s payment to the claimants in an out of court settlement agreed with the council.
The Ladies are extremely grateful to Leigh Day for their diligent approach to the case that has lasted nearly four years, but are less than complimentary to the council who have fought the claim every step of the way, despite other local authorities settling their claims many years ago.
The union UNISON also offered no help to the group, stating in a letter to the women in 2012 that ‘you cannot bring a claim unless you do so within six months of leaving your employment, changing your job, being promoted or your employment transferring to a different employer’.
The landmark case against Birmingham City Council led by the team from Leigh Day at the Supreme Court led to the historic judgement that extended the time limit for claims from six months to six years.
In December 2014 the women were told they were entitled to pay outs but that they were unlikely to receive them before Christmas that year, which caused great unrest amongst the women, as former Chief Executive Bryn Parry-Jones had received a six figure settlement whilst they were still waiting.
Over two years later the claim has finally been settled despite the continuing claims from the council that some women were not entitled to payment as there was ‘no male comparator’ in their job role.
The council had claimed that cooks in charge, cook supervisors and care staff were eligible for pay-outs whilst cleaners, catering assistants, lunchtime supervisors, teaching assistants and school crossing patrols were not. Leigh Day and Co, who gathered information from local unions and other sources to support their claim that every woman was entitled, challenged this. The council also admitted making ‘nominal’ pay-outs to employees in ineligible job roles in order to avoid the legal costs of contesting these claims. With the council now also having to pay the solicitors fees on top of the individual pay outs, the eventual bill is sure to be multiple hundreds of thousands of pounds.
Mrs Doreen Goldthorp has led the charge against the council, after she was underpaid in her role as a care worker, she told The Herald: “After four years of fighting Pembrokeshire County Council we have finally come to the close of our claim, in which there are 100 of us waiting to be paid out our cheques from Mr Chris Benson and Ms Sara Rumberg from Leigh Day & Co at their London office.
“Thank you very much to them, and I’m sure all these people when they get their cheques will appreciate what has been achieved.
“I am delighted that something I started four years ago has now resulted in 100 women in similar situations getting their just rewards and receiving their pay out.
“It wouldn’t have been possible without the fantastic team at Leigh Day, who took on our case when our unions UNISON and GMB said they would not, and when the council said we had no chance.
“We were told by the council at one point to ‘take us on you won’t win anything’ and we have proven them wrong. It is a wonderful day.”
The Herald contacted Pembrokeshire County Council for comment, a spokesperson said: “I understand a settlement has been agreed with just over 100 ex-female employees relating to compensatory payments in lieu of equal pay.
“Initially some of them would not have been liable for a payout as there was only a six month window in which a claim could be made. However a landmark case involving Birmingham City Council in 2012 increased the window for lodging a claim to six years.”
Crime
Recycling company brought before Judge after JCB crushes employee
A PEMBROKESHIRE-BASED recycling company has been brought before a district judge after an employee was seriously injured by a JCB loading shovel.
TBS Recycling and Skip Hire appeared before Judge Mark Layton at Haverfordwest magistrates court earlier this week when company director, Steven Thomas, pleaded guilty to failing to discharge general health, safety and welfare duties to an employee.
The incident occurred on March 31, 2021, at the TBS recycling and skip hire unit which is situated at the Waterston Industrial Estate, between Neyland and Milford Haven.
“An employee of the company was working on the site when he spotted something caught in the wheel of a four-ton JCB,” commented a lawyer for the Health and Safety Executive.
“He went to clear it and the person who was in the [JCB] driving seat knew he was doing it. But he was distracted and believed the other employee had left. So he lowered the shovel, but it crushed him.”
As a result, the employee sustained crushed ribs and damage to his lungs and breathing.
“But he’s since made a good recovery,” said the Health and Safety Executive lawyer.
Steven Thomas, of Cross Farm, Walwyns Castle Road, Ties Cross, will be sentenced by Judge Layton when he sits at Llanelli Magistrates Court on June 6.
Crime
Pembrokeshire car salesman caught driving on cocaine
A PEMBROKESHIRE car salesman has appeared before a District Judge after being caught driving a cream BMW through Kilgetty after taking cocaine.
Fraser Finlay was stopped by police officers on the night of October 3, 2023, as he drove the vehicle along Clayford Road in Wooden.
The officers’ suspicions had been aroused when the trade insurance which covered his vehicle failed to show up on their system.
A roadside breath test was carried out which proved positive and Finlay, 25, was conveyed to a police custody suite where further blood tests were carried out for analysis.
These showed he had 20ug/L of cocaine in his system; the legal threshold limit is 10. He was also found to have 800 ug/L of the cocaine derivative benzoylecgonine in his system; the legal limit is 50.
“This conviction means that my client is most likely to see an end to his job,” his solicitor, David Williams, informed District Judge Mark Layton sitting at Haverfordwest magistrates court earlier this week.
“This is because he works as a car salesman.”
Finlay was disqualified from driving for 17 months. He was fined £450 and ordered to pay a £180 court surcharge and £85 costs.
News
Pembrokeshire hostel manager narrowly avoids jail sentence
A FORMER Pembrokeshire homeless hostel manager narrowly avoided a jail sentence this week after a District Judge was shown footage of her kicking a defenceless man as he lay drunk on the floor.
Linda Tysoe, 52, was seen walking over to Shaun Nelmes and kick him repeatedly. She was also seen hurling a can of tomatoes at his head.
As a result, Mr Nelmes sustained extensive lacerations to his face; images of his injuries were shown to the judge.
“The defendant admits the seriousness of her actions and she can see that they look aggressive,” probation officer Charmain Fox told District Judge Mark Layton when he sat at Haverfordwest Magistrates Court earlier this week.
“But over the last seven years, there have been many incidents of a domestic nature where the defendant was the victim. That night, she saw red and her actions were completely out of character.”
The assault took place on the night of October 1 when Mr Nelmes arrived at Linda Tysoe’s home. CCTV video footage shown to the court that was retrieved from her mobile phone showed that he was heavily intoxicated.
“He was extremely intoxicated, so she asked him to leave,” continued Ms Fox.
“When he left, he then tried to gain entry into the homeless hostel which the defendant was managing. She received calls from residents saying that he was outside, so again she tried to remove him but she saw red. She wanted to make clear that his behaviour was completely out of order.”
Ms Fox said that as a result of the attack, Tysoe has now lost her job.
“She is currently living in a caravan outside the family home,” she said.
Tysoe pleaded guilty to a charge of assault causing actual bodily harm. She was legally represented in court by solicitor Mr Michael Kelleher.
“My client has no previous convictions but she was the victim in previous matters involving the complainant [Shaun Nelmes],” he said.
“At the time this offence was committed, he was on a prison licence for assaulting her.”
Tysoe was sentenced to 16 weeks in custody, suspended for 12 months. She was ordered to complete 15 rehabilitation requirement days and must pay £85 court costs and a £154 surcharge.
“On October 1 last year your relationship came to an end and clearly something happened that night which caused this vicious and violent incident,” said District Judge Mark Layton when imposing sentence.
“You kicked him on the floor and threw a can at him which is believed to have been a full can of tomatoes that caused significant injury to his face. This crosses the custody threshold.”
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