In cases of unlawful discrimination, Claimants can be awarded an amount for ‘injury to feelings’ by the Employment Tribunal in addition to Basic and Compensatory Awards.
The amounts of these awards are governed by the ‘Vento Bands’ (after the case of Vento v Chief Constable of West Yorkshire Police (2002)); there are three bands, the amounts of which are set each year. The Vento bands effective from 6 April 2025 are:
- Lower Band: £1,200 to £12,100 for less serious cases.
- Middle Band: £12,100 to £36,400 for cases that do not merit an award in the upper band.
- Upper Band: £36,400 to £60,700 for the most serious cases.
The Employment Appeal Tribunal (EAT) has overturned a Tribunal award of £10,000 for injury to feelings to a Claimant in a pregnancy / maternity discrimination case, calling it ‘manifestly excessive’.
In Graham v Eddie Stobart, the Claimant had alleged pregnancy and maternity discrimination and was awarded £10,000, mainly arising from the employer's failure to adequately deal with a grievance. The Respondent appealed the award, stating that the Claimant had provided little evidence that her feelings had been injured and had only said that she had been shocked and upset.
The EAT upheld the appeal and substituted a much lower injury award of £2,000 plus interest. It held that there were several factors which could be considered when providing evidence to support of claims of injury to feelings, including:
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- a description of the Claimant’s injury;
- the consequences of that injury and their duration;
- the effect the Claimant’s work;
- the effect on the Claimant’s personal life.
The EAT also provided guidance regarding the relationship between the manner of the discrimination and the likely level of injury, stating that:
- overt discrimination is more likely to cause distress and humiliation;
- discrimination which takes place in front of colleagues or others is likely to cause greater harm;
- the threat of disciplinary action may lead to the inference of a more serious injury to feelings; and
- exclusion causing isolation can also indicate a more serious injury.
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