A Scottish employment tribunal has ordered a recently closed domestic abuse charity to pay a former employee over £5,000.
Glasgow East Women’s Aid (GEWA), which is in the process of liquidation, had faced bullying accusations from several staff prior to its closure announcement last year.
The tribunal ordered GEWA to pay the former employee £3,098 after finding they had not received their full redundancy payment of £10,816.
GEWA was also ordered to pay £2,065 in damages to the employee after dismissing them in breach of their contract’s terms with regard to notice.
The charity was also told to pay the dismissed employee £25.90 for an unauthorised deduction of their wages.
Closure after bullying accusations
The charity announced its plans to close in February 2024 and appointed a provisional liquidator from the insolvency company McLenan Corporate in April 2024.
This came after 13 staff at the charity were suspended after they raised bullying allegations in October 2023.
Last year, the Scottish Government also stated that former MP for Glasgow East David Linden and MSP Neil Gray had received concerns about staff issues at GEWA.
The charity, registered under the Scottish Charity Regulator (OSCR), provided services for women and children fleeing domestic abuse.
It recorded an income of £1.1m with an expenditure of £778,000 for the financial year ending August 2023.
A statement on the charity’s website about the closure, which is now inaccessible, was reported by Third Force News as saying: “We are deeply saddened by the closure of the organisation.
“Our priority at this difficult time is to ensure that women and children currently supported by GEWA continue to receive the help and support they need, and that those who may need support in the future know where to turn.
“We will continue to liaise with partners, including the regulator, Care Inspectorate, funders, and the council, throughout this difficult time.”
Civil Society has asked McLenan Corporate and the charity’s sister organisations, Glasgow Women’s Aid and Scottish Women’s Aid, to comment.
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