Aberdeen Airport worker 'wrongly sacked' over sick days awarded £40,000

A worker for a security firm at Aberdeen Airport has been awarded £40,000 compensation after being “wrongly sacked” over sick days.

Susan Caroline, who worked for contractor ICTS, claimed she was unfairly dismissed over an absence record that included 55 days off sick between February 2023 and November 2024.

Judge Smith ruled the sickness absences were all “genuine”, including 34 days off following a rotator cuff operation and a number of days off due to Covid-19.

Ms Caroline worked as a security supervisor at the airport, having started work there in 2017.

ICTS operates security services at various UK airports and has a workforce of around 4,000 employees.

The tribunal found Ms Caroline attended absence meetings with bosses before being told via email she was dismissed on December 3, 2024.

It was said she had told manager Dumitru Chelaru in a contractual review meeting on November 25 that she was suffering from anxiety and “mental health issues” and had been undertaking counselling.

At the same meeting, Mr Chelaru told Ms Caroline that he had discounted the absence related to her operation from her record.

At the tribunal, Mr Chelaru was asked why he decided to dismiss the claimant. His answer was that he had discounted anxiety and mental health as a factor explaining the absences, and that the decision was “made in line with policy”.

Judge Smith noted: “In my judgment, the real reason Mr Chelaru dismissed the claimant was because of her absences and because he believed that the policy gave him no other option.

“He was following a policy for the sake of the policy, rather than trying to achieve any of the actual objectives of the policy. It was a classic case of a dismissing manager adopting ‘tunnel vision’.”

Ms Caroline appealed the decision but was denied a second appeal.

Following the hearing in Aberdeen on March 4 and 5, she was awarded damages totalling £37,779.21.

She was also awarded £7,350, representing 10.5 times a week’s pay of £700.

ICTS has been contacted for comment.