A lifelong fan and employee of Dundee Football Club who was told his job was obsolete as he was recovering from cancer has won almost £11,000 after taking the club to an employment tribunal.
John Brown, a former commercial associate for the Dens Park side, was due to return to work after receiving life-saving surgery for a tumour on his kidney when bosses broke the news to him.
He was told that a new commercial manager would be taking over his duties organising events, but that he could continue working at match day hospitality - as long as he accepted a pay cut.
Brown, from Broughty Ferry, tried to negotiate with the club but eventually decided to raise a tribunal for disability discrimination.
Employment Judge Ian McFatridge found in his favour, saying it would be "positively perverse" if he had not.
Brown, who had worked with the club since 2010, claimed that it was a difficult decision to raise at the tribunal as it meant taking legal action against the team he has supported since childhood.
He said: "I'll always feel great sadness with the way it ended. I made many good friends during my time there and did not have the opportunity to leave properly as I would have liked, or say goodbye to people I'd worked closely with.
"I took no satisfaction from either taking the club to an employment tribunal or winning my case, rather I felt I was left with absolutely no alternative and was merely relieved to have someone eventually acknowledge that I was not treated in a proper manner whilst off sick with cancer."
The tribunal heard that Brown was considered the lead person for club events and was responsible for organising fundraising events and assisting with hospitality. However, things began to change in the summer of 2014 when chief executive Scott Gardiner left the club suddenly and director Steve Martin became his new line manager.
A number of hospitality events were taking place in connection with a match against Manchester City and Brown was told at the last minute that he would not be working at them. A written judgment on the case states: "The claimant questioned this and was told ... that Steve Martin believed that he was too associated with the old chief executive."
In January 2015 a number of other changes were also made, including Brown being put on a zero hours contract with the club, and a new commercial manager appointed.
Shortly after this Brown fell ill suddenly and discovered he had cancer. He receive surgery to remove the tumour and was off work for a few months.
In August last year he was told his job was now "obsolete"
Brown raised a grievance with the club and wrote at that time: "It appears my life-threatening illness has been used as a convenient vehicle to make me redundant, or at least change my position to a lesser one within the company with a poorer rate of pay. I therefore believe that I have been discriminated against due to my illness and not treated with the equality that I both morally and legally deserve."
His grievance was not upheld.
The club, who had no professional legal representation at the tribunal, told the judge there were "good business reasons" for the decisions it made, but failed to show what those reasons were.
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