The former head of employment at a City firm did not raise a complaint over the use of a racist word because he 'did not want to rock the boat', a tribunal has heard. However, Noel Deans said the experience of hearing the word 'was difficult to put behind me'.
Central London employment tribunal is hearing claims of racial discrimination, unfair dismissal and breach of contract brought by Deans against RBL Law Limited, the parent company of City firm Rosenblatt. Former chief executive Nicola Foulston, founder and senior partner Ian Rosenblatt, and director and compliance officer Anthony Field are named as respondents.
Deans, a litigant in person, was cross-examined about a celebratory dinner held at Ian Rosenblatt’s home at which Deans said Foulston used a racist word. He said: 'Ian was laughing, she was taken aback by him laughing and she said “what what” and that is when Ian said “you cannot say that in this day and age” or anymore, whatever he added to it, and that is when he said “you cannot say this”. [Nicola] just looked at him, not for very long, a matter of seconds, retracted what she said and moved on. She did not apologise, nobody apologised.'
James Bickford-Smith, for Foulston, put to Deans: ‘You never raised the issue with her or what she had said? The first mention is in your resignation letter. You knew she regretted using that phrase. You did not raise it with her. It was not something that made you upset or aggrieved with her at the time.’
Deans said: ‘You have got to appreciate when people are subject to racism ... whether they be black or white, when they find themselves in that sort of situation, they cannot start complaining without thinking about the consequences. I did not want to rock the boat. I left and as I left, my mother had just passed, I welled up. I was hurt. But I tried to put it behind me, it was difficult to put it behind me.
‘Nicola kept saying after that, that Ian did not like me and I thought “wow you said that so easily”, I just thought she had problems as well. It was not for me to raise that because I was fearful of reprisals. I just remember thinking “wow that just came out in a casual way” because she was comfortable in her surroundings. I was the only black person in the room.'
He told the tribunal that ‘Nicola, Ian and Andy had embarked on a plan to remove me’ and that Foulston had told him of plans to hire a new partner in the employment department as they stepped out of a taxi together.
He said: ‘It was brief, odd, and I had no time to discuss it because as soon as we got into the Haymarket she said [another person] was going to join us and shortly he did.’
Deans added: ‘I have never met racism as I encountered it at Rosenblatt. It was just unmistakable.’
The hearing continues.
