Statement: Employment Tribunal, claim of discrimination

11 October 2004

Mr Terry Ampofo, an employee of the Authority (MPA) is bringing a claim of race discrimination against the MPA, being heard at the South London Employment Tribunal. The MPA totally denies any discrimination.

His concerns were first raised in an internal grievance. They were fully and independently investigated by a leading Employment law specialist, who found that Mr Ampofo had not been discriminated against.

The case revolves around the question whether or not Mr Ampofo should have uncontrolled access to the offices of the Internal Audit Directorate of the MPA, in Westminster SW1.

Mr Ampofo is a middle manager in the MPA’s staff of 80, with responsibility for office accommodation and services, and internal financial administration. His responsibilities include the overall physical security of the MPA building.

The MPA was formed in 2000. It relocated to its present offices in 2002. Before then, its staff were in two separate locations. The policy and administrative staff including Mr Ampofo were based in offices in SW1, while the Internal Audit Directorate was in Police offices in Putney. The work of the Internal Audit Directorate involves some highly sensitive investigations. For many years, the Directorate had had tight security at its offices, with access restricted to those who needed it. When the whole of the MPA relocated offices, it was decided that the Internal Audit Directorate should have the same level of security as it had previously, and this was adopted as a policy of the organisation.

Entry to MPA offices is controlled by a system of “swipe cards and pin numbers”. Each employee has a card and pin number, and the card is set to allow him or her access to defined parts of the building. The system in use is similar to that used throughout the Metropolitan Police, and it was installed with advice from police security experts.

Mr Ampofo managed the MPA office relocation in 2002, including the installation of the swipe card / pin system for all the offices. The system is set up so that the staff who work in Internal Audit, together with a small number of very senior managers, gain entry to Internal Audit by using their card and pin number at any time during normal office hours. All other staff in the MPA gain entry to Internal Audit by pressing a bell and waiting to be let in.

During 2003, Mr Ampofo requested unrestricted access to the Internal Audit office and was told that his request could not be granted without a business case justifying the exceptional grant of unrestricted access. He did not produce a case that satisfied the policy.

Mr Ampofo also complained in 2003 about the arrangements for the overall administration of the swipe card and pin system, suggesting that responsibility was allocated unsatisfactorily to IT and Audit staff and that he and one of his assistants should have this responsibility.

Following the report of the independent investigator into Mr Ampofo’s grievance in June 2004, the MPA has taken a number of steps to resolve the matter. Amongst them, a Business Case for Mr Ampofo to have swipe card access to the Audit offices was made on his behalf by the MPA Deputy Chief Executive (who himself does not have such access) and was approved. A detailed review was carried out of the administration of the swipe card system, and responsibilities have now been allocated in line with Mr Ampofo’s proposals. Mr Ampofo received a full apology from the organisation for the fact that these matters had taken longer than they should have done to sort out.

Mr Ampofo has continued to bring his claim to the Employment Tribunal. He claims that the MPA and the Director of Internal Audit have discriminated against him because he is black. The MPA is disappointed that the efforts it has made to resolve his grievance have not satisfied him, and it will vigorously refute his claim of discrimination.

The MPA celebrates the diversity of its organisation, which it sees as a major strength in its work generally and in promoting diversity in the Metropolitan Police in particular. In fact, we believe we have more people from black and minority communities proportionate to our size, of any similar organisation in the country, and follow a code of conduct that embraces the best tenets of employment best practice, for all of our staff. Of the 23 Members of the MPA, eight are black or Asian, including the two deputy chairs of the Authority. Amongst the staff, more than one third are black or Asian. The MPA has been at the forefront of promoting racial harmony through pioneering work on implementing Recommendation 61 of the Stephen Lawrence Inquiry - the recording of police stops; our integral support for the London-wide Race Hate Crimes Forum; through the work of its equal opportunities and diversity board; its commitment to creating a police service that is truly representative of the diverse communities it serves; and a host of other initiatives to encourage inclusivity.

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