Unfair dismissal claim lost by heart specialist

A heart specialist in Coventry has lost his unfair dismissal appeal in the High Court.

The court ruled that hospital chiefs did not unfairly dismiss Dr Raj Mattu, who had argued that it was irrational and unfair of them to let him go during a disciplinary meeting that he could not attend due to illness.

Timothy Straker QC said that chiefs at UHCM NHS Trust, which operates University Hospital, had acted in a reasonable fashion and were honest and fair.

Mr Straker also said that Dr Mattu had not behaved in a manageable way as he had not complied with requirements that were supposed to get him back to work in a speedy fashion.
Allegations of bullying initially led to Dr Mattu's suspension from the Walsgrave Hospital in 2002.

An independent enquiry cleared him in 2007 and his suspension was lifted but then an argument began regarding what retraining the medical professional was entitled to.

In June, Elizabeth Senior lost her court battle against Regents Theological College and her claim that she had been discriminated against on the grounds of religion or belief, the Malvern Gazette reported.

Published by Hannah Carr