Trainee vicar loses 'discrimination' claim after being forced to work on Sundays

A trainee vicar has lost a "discrimination" claim after being forced to work Sundays.

Erich McElevey, a receptionist training to become a priest, has lost claims of religious discrimination and unfair dismissal after alleging he was forced to work on the Sabbath and prevented from reading the Bible at work.

He brought the case against his employer, Wycombe Badminton Centre in Buckinghamshire, following a series of disputes over his working hours, conduct and religious practices during his time as a receptionist at the not-for-profit sports facility.

The trainee vicar also claimed he had been subjected to disciplinary proceedings for letting customers in without payment, which he argued was an expression of his Christian value of loving his neighbour, the Daily Mail reports.

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However, an employment tribunal in Watford dismissed all his claims, finding Sunday working had not been imposed on him and he had in fact requested those shifts himself.

Mr McElevey had worked at the centre since June 2016 and alleged from May 2020, his manager Alistair Jones told him he could not read the Bible during his shifts.

He told the tribunal he had been left sitting for hours "watching paint dry" as a result.

A text message from Mr Jones to Mr McElevey in February 2022, seen by the tribunal, told him not a single player had been checked in during his entire Sunday shift.

His manager consequently instructed him to stop bringing in computers and doing things unrelated to his receptionist duties.

Mr McElevey later claimed Mr Jones had gone further and physically ripped up his theological study notes during a subsequent incident in May 2022.

Mr Jones denied the allegation, telling the tribunal he would never have ripped up an employee's notes as it would have damaged his reputation, been out of character and would in any case have been captured on CCTV.

He also made clear it was policy no employee could read books or use the internet for personal purposes during working hours.

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Employment Judge Elizabeth Coll said it was not "plausible" Mr Jones had destroyed Mr McElevey's notes and found the centre had reasonable and proper cause to prohibit staff from reading non-work material or using devices for personal use during shifts.

The manager also said under cross-examination he had offered additional shifts across all staff, and McElevey had accepted a significant number of weekend shifts over the years - possibly between 60 and 70 over a six-year period.

Judge Coll noted that text exchanges between the two showed Mr McElevey had no objection to working on Sundays and had in fact wanted to do so on a number of occasions.

The trainee vicar had also alleged his Sunday hours were increased from November 2022 in a move he linked to his religion, but the tribunal found no evidence to support the claim.

On the disciplinary proceedings, Mr McElevey told the tribunal he had been trying to help customers by allowing them through to the courts without paying and permitting members to cancel and rebook on the day without incurring a fee.

He said: "I got to the point where I was just trying to live out my faith and love my neighbour as myself."

The centre argued his conduct had caused a financial loss to the business and held a disciplinary hearing in early 2023, at which point Mr McElevey was already subject to a final written warning for previous matters.

He resigned in February 2023 following the hearing.

Judge Coll found the disciplinary action had not been taken in response to any expression of Christian values, but rather for a deliberate failure to follow the IT procedures used to record the arrival of members and non-members, which had resulted in inaccurate recording of money owed.

She also noted Mr McElevey had not related his actions to any Christian beliefs during the disciplinary hearing itself.

All of Mr McElevey's claims, including those for religious harassment, discrimination and unfair dismissal, were dismissed in full.

Mr McElevey declined to comment after being approached.

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