Rolls-Royce engineer loses tribunal case on 'whistle-blowing dismissal'

Rolls-Royce engineer loses tribunal case on 'whistle-blowing dismissal' 

An employment tribunal has dismissed a claim from a senior Rolls-Royce engineer saying he was sacked for blowing the whistle on allegations of potentially serious problems with the company's jet engines.

The tribunal ruled that Hilmi Kurt-Elli was not sacked for raising his concerns with the company but for his unacceptable behaviour in failing to accept an internal investigation's findings that his claims were unfounded.

Judge Richard Hutchinson, who chaired the tribunal in Nottingham, said Rolls-Royce had little choice but to dismiss Kurt-Elli after he accused senior colleagues of conspiring in a cover up to conceal potential faults with its jet engines.

"We are satisfied the dismissal was not because he made protected disclosures [blew the whistle] but because of his behaviour," Hutchinson said in his judgment on Tuesday after the three-week hearing.

The judge added: "He believed, and still does, that from his line manager to the chief and board of directors … [everyone is] corrupt. He makes the most serious allegations against all these people. We are satisfied there is not a shred of evidence to substantiate [them]."

Hutchinson said Rolls-Royce had spent four years investigating his complaints in great detail by some of the most senior engineers in Rolls-Royce, yet Kurt-Elli had "continued with allegations of corruption and illegality without foundation".

Hutchinson said Kurt-Elli, who was a senior design engineer working on Rolls-Royce engines that were used on more than 30 types of passenger jet, was motivated by personal antagonism. "No one else subscribed to his view, and all those that disagreed with him were subject to his attacks."

Kurt-Elli, who was representing himself at the tribunal, did not respond to the ruling. Previously he had said: "People have lied, people have misled."

Rolls-Royce said it would not pursue Kurt-Elli for its legal costs in defending the claim. The company's lawyer, Sean Jones, said: "The whole thing has been a tragedy and we hope that Dr Kurt-Elli will find a way to move on."

After the ruling a Rolls spokesman said: "Rolls-Royce takes its reputation for excellence seriously and strenuously denied the allegations in this case. The company is pleased that the judge has dismissed all substantive claims and cleared all the individuals against whom allegations were made.

"Thorough investigations were carried out into these allegations by Dr Kurt-Elli at the time, including by senior technical experts in line with the company's policies and procedures. These concluded that there was no evidence to substantiate safety or product integrity concerns."

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