A support worker with a warning for sleeping on duty was dismissed after a vulnerable woman wandered barefoot out of her care facility at night, a tribunal heard.
Ms R Gbortsui was meant to be monitoring the gate CCTV, according to the official report of the hearing, but left her post to investigate when some buzzers sounded.
The service user later returned wearing a large pair of men’s sliders, thought to belong to a police officer.
The Disabilities Trust, which runs the home, later dismissed Gbortsui, who made claims of unfair dismissal and direct race discrimination against the charity.
In the report of the subsequent tribunal, the chair Employment Judge Helen Cookson rejected the claims, finding in favour of the charity.
The tribunal heard the incident took place on the night of 2 November 2020, at which time Gbortsui had worked with the charity for five years.
At the time of the event, Gbortsui was the subject of an 18-month written warning for sleeping on duty.
The warning made clear that other similar misconduct could result in dismissal, and it was still live, the hearing was told.
The Disabilities Trust is a specialist charity providing support to individuals with a number of complex needs, including acquired brain injury, autism and physical disabilities.
The events took place in a gated care home that provides secure accommodation for the service users.
Gbortsui had been placed on the night shift, which entailed monitoring the establishment’s CCTV gate. But after a series of buzzers went off, she left her post to investigate, according to court documents.
During the time she was away, one of the charity’s service users left in her nightclothes. She was later returned to the charity by the police, the tribunal heard.
The court was told the charity’s internal investigation concluded that Gbortsui’s actions warranted a warning.
However, as she was already the subject of a live warning, the sanction was increased to dismissal with notice.
Judge Cookson said she was “entirely satisfied” that the charity has met all the criteria of a fair dismissal for misconduct.