LRD guides and handbook May 2018

Law at Work 2018

Chapter 6

Detriment short of dismissal 




[ch 6: page 187]

Although the law provides protection from dismissal during the first 12 weeks of lawful industrial action, it provides no clear protection for striking workers from detriment short of dismissal.
This was highlighted during the British Airways dispute of 2009-11 when the airline punished striking cabin crew by withdrawing valuable travel privileges which were not reinstated when the dispute ended. Members brought a claim in the European Court of Human Rights (ECHR) alleging that the UK’s failure to protect workers from detriment short of dismissal infringes Article 11, but the claim was ruled inadmissible (Roffey v The UK Application No 1218/11, 21 May 2013).