Firm run by Dragons’ Den Hilary loses ‘baby farmer’ bullying case
AS A self-made millionaire and recipient of a CBE, Hilary Devey has been an outspoken critic of sexism in the workplace.
But the former star of BBC’s Dragons’ Den has been left embarrassed after a friend and colleague won a sex discrimination and harassment case against Devey’s freight firm.
A tribunal found Lucinda Hayman, who worked as a manager at Pall-Ex and was described as ‘undoubtedly’ a factor in the early success of the company, was reduced to tears by the ‘bullying behaviour’ of one male director and cruelly described as a ‘baby farmer’ by another.
Ms Hayman began working for Pall-Ex in 2000 but left after discovering she was being paid less than men on the same grade. However, it was made clear that ‘the door was always open’ for her to return, which she did in 2007.
Tribunal papers describe a ‘strong and lasting’ relationship between Ms Hayman and Ms Devey who would socialise together away from work. When Ms Hayman gave birth, Ms Devey – who was ‘one of the first few’ she phoned to share the news – asked for a photograph of the newborn child which she framed and placed in her office.
But the tribunal also heard details of an incident when Ms Hayman met with director Christopher Tancock at the premises of a client in Milton Keynes.
Upon arrival, she told Mr Tancock she had been around the corner, to which he asked sarcastically: ‘Where? In Nottingham?’ The tribunal ruled that the comment was ‘demonstrative of a stereotypical attitude [suggesting] as a woman that she was not competent to drive to a given destination’.
In an earlier incident, the tribunal was told, David Gannon, Pall-Ex’s former finance director, criticised Ms Hayman’s performance by saying: ‘Nothing has happened since you’ve been busy being a baby farmer.’
Following the comments, Ms Hayman called Ms Devey in 2016 to say she was ‘unhappy’ at the company. However, Ms Devey, whose personal fortune has been estimated at £50 million, was said to be ‘upset with personal issues of her own at the time’ and the matter was unresolved.
When Ms Devey discovered Ms Hayman had tendered her resignation, the tribunal heard, she asked her to stay and offered to ‘sack’ Mr Tancock, among others. At one point Ms Devey was heard saying in his office: ‘You’ve been bullying her, haven’t you?’
Ms Devey’s rags-to-riches story made her a favourite on Dragons’ Den. In 1996, Ms Devey, 61, sold her car and house to fund the launch of Pall-Ex.
Describing her battle to get the firm off the ground, she recalled: ‘The bank manager was a bit of a misogynist, frankly. He patted me on the head, said I had no chance.’ The tribunal, which has yet to decide on what sanctions to impose on Pall-Ex, said Ms Devey had not been required to give evidence and ‘her involvement in day to day matters is now significantly reduced’. Ms Devey declined to comment.
‘Reduced to tears by a male director’