Content provided in partnership with

Family given pounds 100,000 after Royal Mail staff bullied a man to

Independent, The (London), Jul 18, 2002 by Terri Judd

"THEY HAVE won," Jermaine Lee wrote to his mother before wrapping a belt round his neck and hanging himself.

"They" were the bullies who had made the postal worker's life a misery for years. "They" were the colleagues who harassed the young black man to death. Yesterday - in an unprecedented move - the Royal Mail conceded with "shock and regret" that a macho culture pervaded its Aston, Birmingham, sorting office and that its employees had "shamefully" contributed to Mr Lee's death.

After the largest internal investigation in the company's history, it agreed a confidential settlement with his family. The payment, believed to be just short of pounds 100,000, is a landmark posthumous award.

Most Popular Articles in News: The Ten Best Laptop bags; Tata plans cheapest-ever car for Indian market; GLOBALIZATION AND THE DEVELOPMENT OF UNDERDEVELOPMENT OF THE THIRD WORLD; Corn is good for you; Corn is not only a tasty treat, but also a cereal that ...; THE 50 BEST STYLISH HANDBAGS TO CARRY; More »

Mr Lee, who was only 26 when his mother found him hanging from the rafters of his home, was not alone in being subjected to the daily torture of bullying and racism. It is, experts say, particularly prevalent in the postal service.

Since it was set up 12 months ago, 6,000 workers, - predominantly postal - have called a Communication Workers Union harassment hotline at a rate of almost one for every half-hour of the working day.

Mr Lee, a happy, popular young man, joined Royal Mail at 17 in the hope of making a career of the postal service.

His father, Steve, 48, said last night: "He was one of the kindest people you could ever hope to meet. He would always be the first person to give up his seat on the bus. All in all, he was a very well- rounded individual. He was very athletic, keen on martial arts and very disciplined. It says something about his character and popularity that, after his death, more than 100 people came forward to say Jermaine would not have committed suicide unless more things were behind it," he added.

Mr Lee had been studying a computer course at college and contemplating buying a house with his girlfriend, Rebecca Hart. But the bullying he had endured for years reached an excruciating crescendo in the later months of 1999. On one occasion, his mother Urnell explained yesterday, he was trapped in an office as one senior manager threatened him and another stood guard.

At other times, he was followed to the toilets by a female manager, who intimidated him by waiting outside. Others spoke of senior staff going out and drinking before returning to the office to abuse Mr Lee and other colleagues. Name-calling was rife.

Described as a "model worker", his conscientious adherence to health and safety rules led him to clash with senior staff. Little is known about the night of 15 November 1999. Pleas for information came to nothing, though his family remain convinced something happened on his last shift that proved to be the "last straw".

When Mrs Lee arrived at their home in Hall Green, Birmingham, the next day, she found him hanging.

"Dear Mom, I love you," he had written in a suicide note. "I always have and always will. It's time for me to go now. I never wanted to go like this but it's the only way out. These guys at work hate me. Tell them it was nice playing with them and that they have won."

Treated initially with "indifference and insensitivity" by their son's former bosses, Mr Lee's parents had to contend with an attempted cover- up by local staff before the national office offered a full inquiry.

Their first taste of what their son had endured came when Steve Lee wrote an open letter to 1,500 postmen asking for evidence surrounding his son's death. The swift response came in the form of two threatening telephone calls, in which he was called a "black bastard" and told to back off unless he wanted to end up like his son.

Mrs Lee said: "We spoke to many former colleagues and were horrified by what we heard. His colleagues told us of how Jermaine had, for many years, been targeted for harassment, threats and abuse - including racist abuse - by a group of managers. We were told of a climate of fear, bullying and racism that had existed at the Birmingham sorting office. We also heard how Jermaine's complaints had fallen on deaf ears."

While the Royal Mail did not go as far as conceding racism was the main factor, Mr Lee's family remain convinced it was the case. It certainly would not be unique in the industry.

One former colleague said: "It's done indirectly. Let's say you wanted to leave the work area. As a black person, you would get watched more than a white person. It was the same for timekeeping. You are noticed more than if you are a white person. If we tried to put our point of view across it was not taken seriously."

In an "extremely rare" decision, Mr Lee's mother was given permission by an employment tribunal to launch a posthumous claim of racial discrimination on behalf of her son. It ended yesterday with the out-of-court settlement,

Consignia set up an internal inquiry. A team of senior managers spent more than six months interviewing more than 100 staff. Its findings made "harrowing reading" and led to two managers - Simon Pitt and Stephen Hughes - being sacked for gross misconduct. Four others were disciplined. One area manager who was suspended, Mick Dewhurst, resigned and is pursuing a case of constructive dismissal.

Family given pounds 100,000 after Royal Mail staff bullied a man to

Independent, The (London), Jul 18, 2002 by Terri Judd

Find Research Guides for:

Find Featured Titles for: Business

Most Popular Articles in News

Most Popular Publications in News