Dundee MP Chris Law being taken to employment tribunal by colleague

AN SNP MP is being taken to an employment tribunal by one of the party's councillors over claims he failed to protect her from "physical and emotional abuse" while she worked in the party's offices.

Dundee West MP Chris Law is facing the claim from Dundee City councillor Roisin Smith, who represents Dundee's Lochee ward.

She previously worked as a senior case worker for Mr Law - but has now lodged a claim for constructive dismissal at the Employment Tribunal offices in Glasgow.

Her grievance runs to almost 20 pages worth of incidents detailed between September 2015 and June 2018.

She claims she was subjected to both verbal, physical and emotional abuse by two other staff members and stated she was constantly undermined and disrespected by Mr Law.

Miss Smith says Mr Law failed to take action to address issues she had raised with him, forcing her to hand in her resignation after, she claims, she was threatened and intimidated by one of the staff members.

In the claim she named staff members Mike Strachan and Tom Thomson as having been responsible for workplace bullying and says she was "subjected to both verbal, physical and emotional abuse daily" by the pair.

She claims Mr Law was negligent in his duty of care to her health and wellbeing at work and that having raised her issues with him regularly for three years, he took no action to address those issues.

In the document Miss Smith said the MP breached her confidentiality by revealing the reasons for her being signed off work with an illness and even asked at one point if she would be working from home after she informed him her GP had signed her off for two weeks.

She claims the lack of support from Mr Law meant she felt "completely alone, disrespected, belittled, demeaned and unvalued," not just by Mike Strachan but also by Mr Law who, she says, "protected Mike despite all my concerns about his behaviour, work ethic and lack of professionalism."

In her claim, she also states she was subjected to harassment by the two staff members, claiming there was constant "bad language, conversation and inappropriate comments" expressed by them, which, she says, caused her "discomfort and embarrassment".

Miss Smith, who supports her elderly parents and cares for her disabled son, says she considered herself "a whistleblower in terms of the implementation of policies and procedures with the constituency office, both of a local and parliamentary nature," adding that Mike Strachan had breached procedures, repeatedly failed to follow processes and repeatedly refused to listen to her as a senior case worker.

She states that the respondents employed solicitors to act on their behalf in dealing with a grievance brought by Miss Smith.

Following a grievance meeting, she was told none of her grievances were upheld.

She stated she is now unsure of her ability to recover following her treatment by the members of staff and adds that a growing culture of bullying and harassment, abusive and demeaning behaviour and disrespect for lines of management led to a breakdown in trust with an employer.

In addition she says clear breaches of confidentiality and protocols being ignored are all to the detriment of a senior employee’s position, authority, reputation, dignity and health.

A date is yet to be set for the tribunal hearing.

Miss Smith could not be reached for comment