Overview

• Wayne Norman, a 63-year-old senior construction consultant with nearly 23 years of service, was made redundant in March 2023 during a Lidl restructuring process.
• The tribunal ruled that requiring a degree or construction qualification in redundancy criteria constituted indirect age discrimination, disproportionately impacting older workers.
• Lidl was ordered to pay £46,280.63 for unfair dismissal and £4,646.15 for injury to feelings, with the total compensation reduced by 50% to account for the possibility of a fair dismissal.
• The tribunal found Lidl's consultation process inadequate and its scoring criteria inconsistently applied, rendering the dismissal procedurally unfair.
• Claims of direct age discrimination and harassment, including an allegation of being called 'grandad,' were dismissed due to insufficient evidence.