NHS worker wins almost £30,000 in compensation after being compared to Darth Vader

Lorna Rooke worked for the NHS as a Training and Practice Supervisor from 2 April 2003 until 17 October 2021. In August 2021, members of Ms Rooke’s team took a Star Wars themed Myers-Briggs questionnaire as a team-building exercise, with the output characterising each of them as a Star Wars character. 

During this exercise, Ms Rooke was temporarily absent from the room, and upon her return was told that another member of the team had completed the test on her behalf, which resulted in her being categorised as “Darth Vader”, which was described as someone who was a very focused individual who brings the team together.

Ms Rooke had previously made a protected disclosure on 20 May 2021 by informing Ms Harber of an omission in one of the questions on the new “Donor Safety Check” that was due to “go live” the following month. It was found by the Employment Tribunal that Ms Rooke had made this disclosure in the reasonable belief that this was in the public interest, and in the belief that it tended to show that the health and safety of any individual had been, was being or was likely to be endangered. 

It was decided by the Employment Tribunal that, following this protected disclosure, Ms Rooke suffered two detriments by her employer. The first was their decision to refuse to allow her to retract her resignation on the grounds of the protected disclosure, and the second was what the Employment Tribunal referred to as the Darth Vader Incident.

The Employment Tribunal found that Darth Vader is a legendary villain of the Star Wars series, and for someone to be aligned with his personality is insulting. Further, it was not Ms Rooke’s answers that gave this result as it was undertaken by a colleague in her absence, therefore it was Ms Harber’s perception of her personality. 

Ms Rooke was awarded:

1. £16,989.61 in respect of the financial losses incurred by her as a result of the employer’s failure to permit her to rescind her resignation; and 

2. £12,000 by way of compensation for injury to feelings. 

Whilst Ms Rooke was unsuccessful in proving that the employer’s conduct was so serious it amounted to a fundamental breach of contract entitling her to resign and bring a claim for constructive unfair dismissal, she was still able to show that it amounted to a detriment following a protected disclosure.

It is also important to note that it was the conduct of another employee (Ms Harber) that amounted to a detriment, for which the employer would have been vicariously liable. 

As an employer, you should ensure that all staff are provided with training on the importance of treating others with respect and dignity in the workplace and know how to deal with complaints raised when they could potentially amount to a “protected disclosure”.

Please contact our Employment Team on 0330 088 2275 for more information on how we can assist you.