Guest house worker who was told changing sheets ‘is a woman’s job’ wins tribunal

Stock image of a woman making a bed

A guest house worker who was told that changing bed sheets “is a woman’s job” has won a claim of constructive unfair dismissal.

Jason Fairfield made the comment to assistant Nicola Nolan after she suggested he should strip his own bed at the Lake District business he co-owned with his wife Catherine, an employment tribunal heard.

Mr Fairfield was also accused of giving a “patronising” response when Ms Nolan raised an issue about a broken lavatory seat later that same day.

Before the comments, Ms Nolan was said to have had a “good working relationship” with Mrs Fairfield – her boss at Appletrees Guest House in Keswick – but when her superior “refused” to apologise for her husband’s behaviour this “changed”, the tribunal heard.

After a “heated discussion” between Ms Nolan and her boss, she left the guest house job and sued for sex harassment and constructive dismissal.

Despite Mr Fairfield insisting he “would not make a comment of this nature because he has three daughters”, an employment judge found the “woman’s work” comment had “violated” Ms Nolan’s dignity.

The Manchester tribunal heard Ms Nolan was employed as an assistant at Appletrees in 2019. Her duties included cleaning guest rooms and serving breakfast.

Both Ms Nolan and Mrs Fairfield agreed they had a “good working relationship” before mid-March 2022 and the tribunal was presented with messages that demonstrated friendly interactions which were full of “kisses and a variety of emojis”.

However, on March 16, comments made by Mrs Fairfield’s husband “changed the previously good working relationship”, the tribunal found.

Employment Judge Hilary Slater said Ms Nolan said “something” to Mr Fairfield, “suggesting that he should have made or stripped the bed that he and Catherine Fairfield had slept in the previous night”.

In response, Mr Fairfield told the employee: “No, it’s not my job to do it, it is a woman’s job.”

Despite his denial, Judge Slater said: “It is possible that it was not a sincerely held view which he expressed but something said to deliberately wind [Ms Nolan] up.”

Later that day, there was a further conversation between the pair about a faulty lavatory seat. Ms Nolan said she had raised the issue of the broken seat on a “number of occasions” and on this day he responded in a “patronising” way.

‘No choice but to leave’

Representing herself, Ms Nolan told the tribunal that Mr Fairfield said words to the effect of “Do I need to take you upstairs and show you how to clean a toilet seat?” or “Do I need to give you an instruction manual on how to clean a toilet seat?”

The following day, Ms Nolan raised the issue of  Mr Fairfield’s conduct to his wife. However, Mrs Fairfield “did not respond” or do anything to indicate that she would consider or address the issue, Ms Nolan said.

On April 4, she requested another chat with her boss. Ms Nolan raised the issue of Mr Fairfield which resulted in a “difficult discussion which may have been heated”, the tribunal found.

It was said at the end of the meeting, Ms Nolan walked out and said “she had no choice but to leave”.

Ns Nolan said she “wanted an apology” from her boss for her husband’s actions but Mrs Fairfield refused.

‘Insulting and patronising’

After the meeting, Mrs Fairfield sent Ms Nolan a message reading saying she was “really sorry” how the “morning turned out”, and added: “You have said you had no choice but to leave. Do I take this as your resignation[?]”

Ms Nolan did not reply and later that day Mrs Fairfield messaged her again, saying she was treating her “decision to walk out of work” as a “termination” of her employment at Appletrees.

Judge Slater found that Mr Fairfield had been “insulting and patronising”.

She said: “Catherine Fairfield, by her response, or lack of it, to [Ms Nolan] raising an issue about Jason Fairfield’s behaviour, gave [Ms Nolan] no assurance that she would take steps to prevent any recurrence of similar behaviour.

“Catherine Fairfield was failing in her duty as an employer to acknowledge and look into a grievance raised by her employee.”

Addressing the “sexist comment” made by Mr Fairfield, Judge Slater said: “The comment was made with the purpose of violating [Ms Nolan’s] dignity or creating an intimidating, hostile, degrading, humiliating or offensive environment for [her].”

Her claims of constructive unfair dismissal and complaint of harassment related to sex in relation to Mr Fairfield’s “woman’s job” comment were upheld, although other claims she made were rejected.

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