£25k tribunal | 'Unwanted birthday card' claim exposes wider HMRC failings

An HMRC employee who received a birthday card from colleagues, after explicitly stating they didn’t want to celebrate the occasion - has been awarded £25,000 by a tribunal.

Ms Toure successfully sued her employers after raising more than 20 allegations against HMRC, with the tribunal upholding several claims of race and disability harassment, discrimination, and victimisation. One of the most notable claims surrounded circumstances in which her superiors sent her a birthday card despite her clear objections. 

At the time, Ms Toure had been on sick leave due to work-related stress - which had been exacerbating the symptoms of a pituitary gland tumour - when she emphasised her desire for minimal contact, specifically requesting correspondence via email only. 

However, in the following month, she was contacted multiple times and received a birthday card, despite previously informing her boss that she did not want such recognition.