Reporting you to your regulator after you complain can be illegal retaliation
“Disability discrimination, harassmentUnwanted behaviour related to a protected characteristic, such as your sex, race, disability, age or religion, that violates your dignity or creates an intimidating, hostile or humiliating environment... and victimisationBeing treated badly because you've raised a complaint, supported someone else's complaint, or done something else the law protects, such as raising a grievance or whistleblowing. It is unlawful in its... succeeded in part; £16,686 awarded.”
If your employer threatens to report you to your professional regulator after you've raised a complaint, that can be unlawful victimisation.
- Keep a record of the timing between your complaint and any regulatory threat. Timing like this is often the strongest evidence you have.
- A dismissive comment from a manager about your condition or your complaint can itself count as harassment under the law.
- If your employer breaks an agreed adjustment or raises a regulatory referral after you complain, get advice before you respond.
The situation
A care worker with diabetes had an agreed shift pattern that let him manage his condition safely. His employer broke that arrangement and left him running medication rounds alone, across two separate care units. When he raised a complaint, a manager described his situation as a "pretty poor show", and an internal email about his request said, "he has pulled this card time and time again, can we just not process as he has requested and get shot." Then HR threatened him with a referral to the Nursing and Midwifery Council, the body that regulates his profession.
What the tribunal found
The tribunal upheld part of the claim. It found for the claimant on reasonable adjustmentsChanges an employer must make under the Equality Act 2010 for a disabled employee, where without them the employee would be at a substantial disadvantage compared to non-disabled colleagues. What coun..., and separately upheld harassment and victimisation under the Equality Act 2010The main piece of legislation protecting employees from discrimination at work. It covers nine protected characteristics including age, disability, sex, race, and religion, and makes it unlawful for a.... The regulator threat, taken together with the internal email dismissing his complaint, counted as victimisation under section 27, a deliberate attempt to intimidate him after he raised concerns. The manager's remark and the regulator threat also amounted to harassment. The tribunal considered the regulatory threat serious enough to add a £10,000 aggravated damagesExtra compensation a tribunal can award on top of your normal claim if your employer's conduct was especially high-handed, malicious, or insulting, not just unlawful. It reflects the additional hurt c... award on top of £5,000 for injury to feelingsA head of compensation in discrimination claims that recognises the distress and hurt caused by discriminatory treatment, separate from any financial loss. The amount is assessed using the Vento guide.... With interest, the total came to £16,686.
A threat to report you to your professional body, coming soon after you've raised a complaint about how you've been treated at work, can be retaliation. Retaliating against someone for raising a complaint about discrimination is unlawful victimisation. This matters most if you work in a regulated role, nursing, care, teaching, or anywhere else with a professional body attached. A referral threat is designed to feel serious enough to make you back off. What matters is whether it lands shortly after you complain, with no genuine, separate conduct issue behind it. Tribunals look hard at timing like that. You don't have to work out on your own whether a threat like this crosses the line. If your employer breaks an agreed adjustment, dismisses your condition in writing or in a meeting, or threatens you with a regulatory referral after you've complained, keep everything in writing and get advice before you respond. An employment adviser or solicitor can help you preserve the evidence and tell you whether what happened supports a claim.
Wroe v Barchester Health Care Ltd. Case 6004086/2024. Employment Tribunal. 2 April 2026.