RSA unfairly sacked employee over union claims

The Royal Society of Arts (RSA) unfairly dismissed an employee who spoke to the press about the organisation's refusal to recognise the staff trade union, an employment tribunal has found.

In a ruling delivered last month, which has been recently published, a judge found that Ruth Hannon had been unfairly dismissed by the RSA on grounds related to her trade union membership and was awarded her £6,959 in compensation.

Hannon was let go from her contract at RSA the day after she was quoted in The Obervor of accusing the RSA of hypocrisy because it had repeatedly refused to recognise the Independent Workers Union of Great Britain (IWGB), which almost half its staff had joined.

In the article, the former Head of Policy and Participation at RSA noted that contrary to its stance within its organisation, RSA had publicly praised IWGB and given them an award for unionising workers in the gig economy.

Her termination letter, which ended her employment a week early, claimed Hannon had made “unauthorised, misleading and potentially damaging statements”. An active member of IWGB, Hannon brought a claim against RSA for detriment for engaging in trade union activity.

IWG members at the RSA staged strike action in September after rejecting a £1,000 pay rise for all staff.

The IWGB said: “Ruth’s legal victory has only strengthened our members’ resolve to win the ongoing pay dispute and has given them confidence and energy to transform the RSA into an organisation that respects and values their work.”

In a statement to Morning Star, an RSA spokesperson said: “We respect, but are extremely disappointed, by the tribunal’s judgment given the facts of this case and we reserve our right to appeal it."