A manager at Olinda Chapel-Nkomo’s UK-based healthcare company has won an unfair dismissal case after being fired just two days after reporting sexually inappropriate behaviour by Tytan Nkomo.
Amber Stoter, 30, reported that Tytan, then husband to Gain Healthcare founder and CEO Olinda Chapel-Nkomo, had made lewd comments and referred to her as his girlfriend and property.
She raised the issue with her line manager, Jessica Cannon, on June 26, 2023. Despite Stoter’s objections, Cannon informed Chapel-Nkomo of the complaint the following day.
On June 28, Stoter was dismissed during what the Reading Employment Tribunal described as a heated and ambush-style meeting.
Gain Healthcare claimed the dismissal was based on performance issues, including Stoter’s visits to a nearby tanning studio during work hours and excessive use of WhatsApp for work communication.
However, the tribunal concluded the dismissal was directly linked to Stoter’s harassment report and found that the company viewed her complaint as a problem, rather than investigating it properly.
Stoter, who says she has struggled to find employment since, is now set to receive compensation.
In her witness statement, Chapel-Nkomo said: “I dismissed her because of her exceptionally concerning and escalatory behaviour during my one to one with her.”
The tribunal found that Stoter’s complaint “involved a specific report of sexual misconduct, directed at a junior female employee by a male with senior status at work”.
It noted the company’s duty to uphold safeguarding standards, given its work with vulnerable clients. Employment Judge Colin Baran said:
Overall, the Tribunal concludes that the principal reason for (Ms Stoter’s) dismissal by Mrs Chapel-Nkomo was the making of the protected disclosure about Mr Nkomo….
The Tribunal concludes that at the time of dismissal Mrs Chapel-Nkomo knew of the fact and nature of the disclosure – reports of sexually inappropriate conduct by her husband Mr Nkomo towards (Ms Stoter), a new member of staff.
Such a disclosure, if properly acted upon, would have been problematic not just for (Gain Healthcare) but also for Mr Chapel-Nkomo personally.
The judgment found that the dismissal lacked supporting evidence and the company failed to investigate the issues raised by Stoter.
It concluded that Chapel-Nkomo dismissed her in response to the complaint about her husband.
Stoter also succeeded in a claim of victimisation. A hearing to determine her compensation is set for September.
More: MailOnline
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