Muslim cocktail waitress wins dress case

Fata Lemes, 33, was awarded £2,919.95 in compensation for hurt feelings and loss of earnings. After refusing to wear a tight red dress when working for eight days at a cocktail bar in Mayfair, she claimed she was forced to resign, claiming for £20,000 including over £17,000 for hurt feelings.

The panel said that Ms Lemes, who said the dress made her feel like a prostitute, held “views about modesty and decency which some might think unusual in Britain in the 21st Century”.

Also refused were the claims that she was discriminated against as she did not receive tips for the eight days she worked.

The panel called her claim ‘manifestly absurd’

Get our essential daily HR news and updates. Company This field is for validation purposes and should be left unchanged. Email Weekday HR updates. Unsubscribe anytime. This field is hidden when viewing the form Optin_form This field is hidden when viewing the form Optin_date Year Month Day This field is hidden when viewing the form Batch_Newsletter

However, the panel ruled that forcing her to wear the dress to keep her job “violated her dignity”. The contrast between what men and women were required to wear made the policy discriminatory on the grounds of sex.

Fata Lemes was granted £3,000 compensation and £711.73 in wages, plus interest, but the amount was reduced by 25% because the members of the panel found Ms Lemes’s lawyer did not set the basis for the case properly.