Birmingham City Council flatulence scandal: Worker to receive payout after kicking up stick over managers wind

A council has been marred by a flatulence scandal after one of its managers was punished for breaking wind on a junior colleague as he ate his lunch.

While Lee Marsh thought the incident “amusing”, an employment judge ruled it amounted to age discrimination.

He also concluded that the estate caretaker, in his late 50s, had a problem with his “ambitious” junior colleague potentially having authority over him.

The panel was told Mr Marsh had threatened the trainee caretaker when he objected to the “disgusting behaviour”.

The younger worker told the tribunal: “He said to me, ‘Be careful how you speak to me . . . you are only a trainee, I can get rid of you like I have the others in the past’.”

It was accepted that Mr Marsh had warned him about going for a more senior role because he “will not be told by youngsters”.

In a somewhat unfortunate turn of phrase, the younger colleague told the tribunal: “Once Lee got wind of my progression plan is when I first felt uncomfortable around him.”

“It would be comments like ‘these babies coming in and trying to take over’, ‘you are only a pup’, ‘I have got kids your age’.”

At the time of the pair’s conflict, bosses at Labour-run Birmingham City Council – Europe’s largest local authority – were grappling with a financial black hole that would ultimately see it effectively declare itself bankrupt.

The tribunal heard the younger colleague – who is in his mid-30s and was granted anonymity – joined the council in October 2020.

Two months into his employment, it became apparent the housing worker was ambitious in his career – and Mr Marsh broke wind as the trainee ate on December 8.

The hearing in Birmingham was told that in November 2021 Mr Marsh threatened the trainee with violence, including the use of a chair.

Both were subjected to gross misconduct allegations over that incident, leading to the junior housing worker going off sick and subsequently resigning.

The council admitted he was constructively dismissed as he should not have faced the allegations.

Judge Christopher Camp found that the “breaking wind incident” amounted to age discrimination.

He said there was “strong evidence Mr Marsh had a problem with somebody of [the housing worker’s] age potentially being in authority over him”.

Although the judge ruled that the housing worker did suffer age discrimination and age-related harassment, the claims ultimately failed because he raised them too late. However, the trainee is in line for compensation relating to his unfair dismissal claim.