Man ordered to pay council over ‘fabricated’ claim of racial discrimination

A man has been ordered to pay Bradford Council £2,000 after he “fabricated” a claim about racial discrimination.

Joseph Mayanja claimed he was offered the role of Refugee and New Communities Integration Officer following an interview in 2021, but that offer was then withdrawn.

Mr Mayanja, who is black, took the council to a tribunal, claiming it was in “breach of contract” and it had “directly discriminated against him because of race”.

Employment Judge O’Neill accepted that Mr Mayanja had only been told he was “the preferred candidate” and he was withdrawn from the selection process because he lied on his job application.

He ruled that Mr Mayanja should pay £2,000 towards the council’s legal fees because he “acted unreasonably” when he took the case to a tribunal and “fabricated the harassment claim”.

During the tribunal, Mr Mayanja claimed that Helen Clipsom, chair of the selection panel, offered him the position in an answer phone message in October 2021, but he had “no evidence of such calls”.

Mrs Clipsom denied making an offer and said she became “frustrated” with Mr Mayanja because he failed to provide the correct contact details for previous employers so she could obtain references, despite numerous requests.

Mr Mayanja claimed Mrs Clipsom harassed him during a phone call on November 5 or 6 and said: “This is not Africa, the procedure in this country you provide all former employee details”.

But phone records show that he did not have any conversations with her on either day.

Mr Clipsom said that when she finally obtained references from Mr Mayanja’s former employers on November 9, she realised he had lied on his original job application about his experience and previous salaries.