United Kingdom Employment Appeal Tribunal

APPEARANCES

 

For the Appellants	NOT PRESENT OR REPRESENTED
For the Respondent	IN PERSON


 


MR JUSTICE MORISON: The question raised by this appeal is whether the hearing which is fixed for 18 October should take place, that is for the hearing of the BBC's appeal against a decision of an Employment Tribunal which upheld Dr Jiad's complaint that he had been unlawfully discriminated against. He works for the World Service and that means working on a shift system and he is currently employed by the BBC.

1. He tells me, and I accept, that he has considerable family commitments and taking time off work without pay is not something which is acceptable to him. What he says is that if the hearing date is fixed for 18 October, he will not be able to prepare himself properly for what he regards as an important case, not just for himself, but as having a wider impact than on him, and that if he was to ask for time off because he has exhausted his leave for 1999, he will find himself having to prepare for this case without pay. I have considerable sympathy for Dr Jiad's position. On the other hand, it is important that the business of the EAT should take place reasonably promptly.
2. It seems to me that the BBC may well wish to consider whether Dr Jiad could draw down on his holiday entitlement for the year 2000 in advance of moving into the year 2000. He will no doubt apply to them for paid holiday leave, prior to the case taking place, so as to enable him properly to prepare himself since he is unable to obtain legal advice. It seems to me that if he were to ask the BBC for paid time off to prepare himself for the appeal any application made by Dr Jiad at the hearing of the appeal on 18 October for an adjournment would be unlikely to be successful. I will simply leave the matter there and indicate that as things stand at the moment, the case should take place on 18 October and Dr Jiad I have no doubt will use his best endeavours to prepare himself for that but will no doubt apply to the BBC as I have indicated. His prospects of getting an adjournment on 18 October will to some extent depend upon the BBC's reaction to his suggestions.
3. Dr Jiad has raised the question as to what issues are to be determined at the forthcoming hearing. It seems to me that is a perfectly reasonable request since the learned Judge who permitted the case to proceed to a full hearing did not give any kind of judgment but has simply completed a sheet of paper which is not available to the parties. I instruct that that sheet should be sent to both parties and I have made it plain on the basis of that sheet that the issues which fall to be determined at the forthcoming appeal hearing are those which are set out in the Skeleton Argument which was presented to the Court on that occasion. Those are the issues which will fall to be determined as I understand it by the Employment Appeal Tribunal on 18 October.