The EAT has ruled that an employee claiming whistleblowing detriment need only show that the protected disclosure played more than a trivial part in the employer's reason for the treatment.
The employer is required to prove on the balance of probabilities that the detriment was in no sense whatever (ignoring trivial influences) on the ground of the protected act. Previous caselaw had suggested that the protected disclosure must be the core reason for the detriment (as it is for whistleblowing dismissal claims).
The employees' detriment claim in this case succeeded where the detriment arose out of an employer trying to deal with a breakdown of relations with colleagues caused by the disclosure. (Fecitt v NHS Manchester, EAT)
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