A firefighter sued his bosses after they refused to let him go part-time to build £50,000 Bilbo Baggins-style hobbit homes.
Matt Wright felt at a crossroads in his career, when his creations were widely covered by the media. Now, he wants to focus his efforts on making The Lord of The Rings homes.
A tribunal found that Mr Wright wanted to concentrate on his “luxury cat spa and hotel” with Julie, his wife as a veterinarian.
Nottinghamshire Fire and Rescue Service was contacted by him to suggest he might work part-time in night shifts. He then complained that they had rejected his suggestion.
Later, the 36-year old fell ill due to work stress. However, he said that he was able to continue working on both of his businesses.
Wright was an Army engineer who learned his carpentry skills. He told his GP that he enjoyed building Bilbo’s Bag end adult version, which are eco-friendly and come with a 125 year warranty, as a’relaxing activity.
After his request for part-time service was not granted, he quit the fire department and even groaned that he was being ‘harassed’ and ‘victimized’.
Wright now wants to sue the service, for unfair dismissal. However, he lost after a panel found him ‘ironically inflexible’ when it comes to flexible working hours.
Matt Wright felt at a crossroads in his career, when his creations were widely covered by the media. Now, he wants to focus his efforts on making The Lord of The Rings homes.
Wright was an Army engineer who learned his carpentry skills. He told his GP that he enjoyed building Bilbo’s Bag end adult version, which are eco-friendly and come with a 125-year warranty, as a’relaxing activity.
The tribunal also ruled Mr Wright had been in breach of his fire service contract by ‘downplaying’ his so-called ‘hobby business’ to bosses, when he had in fact quietly acquired almost £200,000 worth of assets.
Following his 2009 service, Wright established Limegrove Cattery, which he based in Mansfield in Notts in 2015.
The panel heard it was a ‘successful and profitable’ business and on its website it advertises cats nail clipping and an ‘anal gland expression’ service for £5 each.
Wright was first to apply to lower his hours to 50 percent in 2017. This year, he also founded Hobbit House Limited. Wright said he loved his job and needed the money to support his family.
A remote tribunal in Nottingham heard that only about 30% of firefighters had a second job. The panel found it extremely rare for them to be able to work part-time.
According to the tribunal, Nottinghamshire Fire and Rescue Service had’reacted favorably’ to Mr. Jones’ part-time request and attempted to accommodate him. However, it could not implement it.
It was impossible for the fire department to find someone willing and able to finish 50 percent of its work.
Wright had submitted another application for 2019 but was rejected. He was then signed off by stress management at work for two more months.
Panelists read the GP notes of Mr. Smith, who stated that he enjoys ‘cattery’ and ‘building garden structures’. This was deemed ‘totally unacceptable by the service.
His bosses’ reactions were deemed ‘unsurprising by the tribunal’.
After lengthy negotiations and complicated discussions, Wright submitted a grievance claiming he’d lost all confidence in his service and that he felt harassed at home by threats of serious conduct problems.
Following the loss of his appeal, grievance and appeal, he felt ‘unreasonable and unfairly treated’ and resigned.
According to the Hobbit House website, they can be permanent homes, garden offices or classrooms.
Wright failed to bring suit at the employment tribunal for detriment and victimisation. He also tried unsuccessfully to dismiss unfair dismissal claims.
Robert Clark, Employment Judge concluded that he was not surprised by the following: [the]The response was that the suggestion to take two months of paid sick leave, but was still well enough to work in two other businesses, was “totally unacceptable”.
“Despite Wright’s opinions about what it should do, we are satisfied with the response of the service to Wright’s request to lower his work hours.
“It’s ironic in this instance that it appeared that Mr Wright had been somewhat inflexible with his flexible work request at different stages and that his request was seen as more important than the needs and considerations for the service.
“Throughout the case Mr Wright insisted that his activities be called a “hobby enterprise”. This label, however, is not relevant unless it demonstrates to us that Wright sought to minimize the activity and nature of his interest.
“We also note our observation that Mr Wright had numerous instances where his business interests appeared to be in conflict with his primary service obligations.
“There might even be reason to question Mr Wright’s true motivations behind his applications.”
Judge Wright questioned Wright’s motivations for his application, suggesting that they were ‘particular to a plan to utilize the fire service financially to support a transition towards self-sufficiency within his business interests.