Sky complaints handler sacked after 30 years for hanging up on customers

Lorraine Hunter, a Sky call handler with 30 years' service, was sacked for deliberately disconnecting high-value customers' calls and blaming technical issues. An employment tribunal upheld her dismissal as fair.

Brit Brief 03/07/2026 13:19

Sky complaints handler sacked after 30 years for hanging up on customers — Sky handler sacked for hanging up on customers after 30 years

Lorraine Hunter, a call handler at Sky for 30 years, was dismissed after an investigation found she had deliberately hung up on customers and blamed technical issues. The employment tribunal in Edinburgh ruled her dismissal was fair, rejecting her claim for unfair dismissal.

Investigation reveals deliberate disconnections

Sky bosses grew suspicious that Hunter was prematurely ending calls with high-profile and high-value customers. They recorded conversations and identified seven calls that were abruptly terminated. The tribunal heard that disconnecting a call required a 'two-step physical action', making accidental disconnection unlikely. After one such call, Hunter claimed she did not call back because she 'must have dialled the wrong number'.

In a conduct meeting on May 28, 2024, the suspicious calls were played to Hunter. She was formally dismissed the following week for gross misconduct, with Sky stating: 'You have breached our policies by disconnecting customers and failing to call customers back which represents a significant risk moving forward.'

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Appeal and tribunal outcome

Hunter appealed the decision, insisting she had not hung up and blaming technical issues. The appeal was upheld, but she then took her case to an employment tribunal in Edinburgh. Employment Judge Michelle Sutherland sided with Sky, concluding that the company had a reasonable belief that Hunter deliberately disconnected calls, carried out a reasonable investigation, and acted fairly in dismissing her.

Judge Sutherland noted: 'Sky is a very large employer with significant administrative resources and a dedicated HR function. Having regard to the size and administrative resources of Sky and the disciplinary process as a whole, there was no unreasonable failure to comply with their own disciplinary procedure or the ACAS Code of Practice.'

Long service no defence

The judge added that despite Hunter's long service without prior warning, Sky acted reasonably in treating the misconduct as sufficient grounds for dismissal. Hunter's complaint of unfair dismissal was dismissed.