The University of Edinburgh has been told to pay a former employee over £1m in compensation for unfair dismissal over a decade ago.
Professor Roya Sheikholeslami, who is from Iran, won the employment tribunal after the court ruled that the university failed to follow procedure before she was dismissed. Professor Sheikholeslami will be paid a total sum of £1,145,216.26 for past and future economic losses as a result of the incident.
This news comes after the University of Edinburgh warned its staff that “nothing is off the table” in the university’s response to financial difficulties. Principal Peter Mathieson has told staff to expect redundancies and other cost-cutting measures in the coming months.
Professor Sheikholeslami was employed by the School of Engineering at the University of Edinburgh in 2007, until her dismissal in 2012. In 2010, she was diagnosed with work-related stress and depression and took sick leave, making her a disabled person under the Equality Act 2010.
During her time-off work, the academic’s salary was first halved, then reduced to nothing.
In 2010, both Professor Sheikholeshalmi and Professor Andrea Schaefer, the only female professors in the School of Engineering at the time, wrote to the former Principal Sir Timothy O’Shea about misogyny in the department.
During discussions with the university about returning to work, Professor Sheikholeslami suggested transferring out of the School of Engineering, which the university did not approve. The Professor’s work permit expired in April 2012, after which the University of Edinburgh terminated her employment.
After her dismissal, Professor Sheikholeslami was unable to work, access healthcare through the NHS, or leave Scotland.
It has been found that the University of Edinburgh had discriminated against Professor Sheikholeslami’s disability by failing to explore options for her return to work from sick leave.
The Employment Tribunal also stated that the University did not follow procedure, as the academic was not consulted in a meeting before dismissal and was not able to appeal the decision once it had been made.
The Professor’s final compensation of over £1 million comes after a 13-year legal battle with the University of Edinburgh.
The initial court ruling in 2017 found that she was unfairly dismissed and entitled to holiday pay but dismissed claims of sex and disability discrimination.
Professor Sheikholeslami then appealed this decision and was awarded an additional £2,850 and compensation of £312.50 in 2020.
The decision was appealed again, and it was found that the University of Edinburgh discriminated against Professor Sheikholeslami on the grounds of disability, and she was victimised for raising concerns about gender discrimination.
The verdict also concluded that the University of Edinburgh failed to take reasonable steps to protect the academic’s legal working status.
The University of Edinburgh stated:
“While we respect the judgment, we do not comment on individual cases and won’t provide a further statement on the matter.”
“University of Edinburgh” by Ipoh kia is licensed under CC BY-ND 2.0.