Personnel Today
  • Home
    • All PT content
  • Email sign-up
  • Topics
    • HR Practice
    • Employee relations
    • Learning & training
    • Pay & benefits
    • Wellbeing
    • Recruitment & retention
    • HR strategy
    • HR Tech
    • The HR profession
    • Global
    • All HR topics
  • Legal
    • Case law
    • Commentary
    • Flexible working
    • Legal timetable
    • Maternity & paternity
    • Shared parental leave
    • Redundancy
    • TUPE
    • Disciplinary and grievances
    • Employer’s guides
  • AWARDS
    • Personnel Today Awards
    • The RAD Awards
  • Jobs
    • Find a job
    • Jobs by email
    • Careers advice
    • Post a job
  • Brightmine
    • Learn more
    • Products
    • Free trial
    • Request a quote
  • Webinars
  • Advertise
  • OHW+

Personnel Today

Register
Log in
Personnel Today
  • Home
    • All PT content
  • Email sign-up
  • Topics
    • HR Practice
    • Employee relations
    • Learning & training
    • Pay & benefits
    • Wellbeing
    • Recruitment & retention
    • HR strategy
    • HR Tech
    • The HR profession
    • Global
    • All HR topics
  • Legal
    • Case law
    • Commentary
    • Flexible working
    • Legal timetable
    • Maternity & paternity
    • Shared parental leave
    • Redundancy
    • TUPE
    • Disciplinary and grievances
    • Employer’s guides
  • AWARDS
    • Personnel Today Awards
    • The RAD Awards
  • Jobs
    • Find a job
    • Jobs by email
    • Careers advice
    • Post a job
  • Brightmine
    • Learn more
    • Products
    • Free trial
    • Request a quote
  • Webinars
  • Advertise
  • OHW+

Sexual harassmentCase lawBullying and harassmentLatest NewsDiscipline and grievances

Schoolgirl awarded £16k in Pizza Hut sexual harassment case

by Rob Moss 13 Aug 2018
by Rob Moss 13 Aug 2018 A Pizza Hut Delivery branch in central London
Photo: Jeff Blackler/REX/Shutterstock
A Pizza Hut Delivery branch in central London
Photo: Jeff Blackler/REX/Shutterstock

A 17-year-old schoolgirl receptionist at a Pizza Hut Delivery branch in east London has been awarded £15,800 after winning a claim of sexual harassment at employment tribunal.

The girl began working at the Hornchurch branch of Pizza Hut Delivery, a franchise run by Kash PH, in June 2016 having been introduced to the business by her older sister.

From February 2017 she began working with a new manager, Sultan Tanha. On one occasion when Tanha had leftover cheese and toppings on his hands, he shook the food on to her face and clothes.

At other times, he would try to hold her hand but when she tried to move away he would still attempt to make physical contact, coming up behind her and whispering in her ear. When challenged and asked why he was standing so close, he would say that she was “crowding him”.

His response to her reaction was to shout at her and to find fault with her work. In May 2017 Tanha found an excuse to hug the claimant, taking hold around her waist in the region of her hips, looking her up and down and walking off. Subsequently, she said she was singled out, told not to talk others and had shifts cancelled at short notice.

Employment judge Catrin Lewis accepted the claimant’s account and that Tanha’s actions were unwanted conduct of a sexual nature. She said this created an environment that was “intimidating, hostile and humiliating” for the claimant, particularly given her age, that she  was still at school and in her first job.

Sexual harassment at work

Deal with a complaint of bullying or harassment

Sexual harassment: How HR can help develop a culture of respect

In her judgment Lewis said: “We are satisfied that she would not have been treated in the way that she was… if she was a man and that treatment was related to her sex and her rejection of Sultan’s unwanted conduct.”

She added: “We found the claimant to be credible and where there is conflict with the respondent’s evidence we prefer that of the claimant.

“The respondent’s witnesses were inconsistent in their own evidence between what they said in chief and in their cross-examination and on the balance of probability we prefer the account given by the claimant.”

The judge awarded £13,000 for injury to feelings. She did not find sufficient evidence of any clear policy or procedure for dealing with sexual harassment and conduct in the workplace and applied an extra 15% because of failings in the business’s handling of the claimant’s grievance. Further compensation was added for loss of earnings and interest.

“We found that the investigation was entirely defective. It did not in fact address the points raised by the claimant nor did it provide any response to her complaints,” said the judgment.

Sign up to our weekly round-up of HR news and guidance

Receive the Personnel Today Direct e-newsletter every Wednesday

OptOut
This field is for validation purposes and should be left unchanged.

In a statement Pizza Hut said: “The safety and wellbeing of our people is our top priority and we do not condone this behaviour.

“Mr Tanha no longer works for the business and we are working closely with our franchisee to ensure the correct procedures are followed.”

Rob Moss

Rob Moss is a business journalist with more than 25 years' experience. He has been editor of Personnel Today since 2010. He joined the publication in 2006 as online editor of the award-winning website. Rob specialises in labour market economics, gender diversity and family-friendly working. He has hosted hundreds of webinar and podcasts. Before writing about HR and employment he ran news and feature desks on publications serving the global optical and eyewear market, the UK electrical industry, and energy markets in Asia and the Middle East.

previous post
Employers report lack of candidates and pressure to increase wages
next post
Two-thirds don’t offer specific mental health support for workers abroad

You may also like

Consultation launched after Supreme Court ‘sex’ ruling

20 May 2025

Ministers urged to outlaw misuse of NDAs

7 May 2025

BBC to ‘act immediately’ on workplace culture review

28 Apr 2025

Eight new equality laws in the pipeline

10 Apr 2025

Philip Green loses human rights case at ECHR

8 Apr 2025

Darlington nurses’ changing room case delayed to October

3 Apr 2025

Woman asked ‘why do you want to work’...

3 Apr 2025

Former minister calls for end to ‘two-tier’ use...

2 Apr 2025

Primark boss resigns after ‘error of judgment’

31 Mar 2025

Sullivan Review shows how ‘sex’ has been purged...

20 Mar 2025

  • 2025 Employee Communications Report PROMOTED | HR and leadership...Read more
  • The Majority of Employees Have Their Eyes on Their Next Move PROMOTED | A staggering 65%...Read more
  • Prioritising performance management: Strategies for success (webinar) WEBINAR | In today’s fast-paced...Read more
  • Self-Leadership: The Key to Successful Organisations PROMOTED | Eletive is helping businesses...Read more
  • Retaining Female Talent: Four Ways to Reduce Workplace Drop Out PROMOTED | International Women’s Day...Read more

Personnel Today Jobs
 

Search Jobs

PERSONNEL TODAY

About us
Contact us
Browse all HR topics
Email newsletters
Content feeds
Cookies policy
Privacy policy
Terms and conditions

JOBS

Personnel Today Jobs
Post a job
Why advertise with us?

EVENTS & PRODUCTS

The Personnel Today Awards
The RAD Awards
Employee Benefits
Forum for Expatriate Management
OHW+
Whatmedia

ADVERTISING & PR

Advertising opportunities
Features list 2025

  • Facebook
  • Twitter
  • Instagram
  • Linkedin


© 2011 - 2025 DVV Media International Ltd

Personnel Today
  • Home
    • All PT content
  • Email sign-up
  • Topics
    • HR Practice
    • Employee relations
    • Learning & training
    • Pay & benefits
    • Wellbeing
    • Recruitment & retention
    • HR strategy
    • HR Tech
    • The HR profession
    • Global
    • All HR topics
  • Legal
    • Case law
    • Commentary
    • Flexible working
    • Legal timetable
    • Maternity & paternity
    • Shared parental leave
    • Redundancy
    • TUPE
    • Disciplinary and grievances
    • Employer’s guides
  • AWARDS
    • Personnel Today Awards
    • The RAD Awards
  • Jobs
    • Find a job
    • Jobs by email
    • Careers advice
    • Post a job
  • Brightmine
    • Learn more
    • Products
    • Free trial
    • Request a quote
  • Webinars
  • Advertise
  • OHW+