Tech Worker's £95,000-a-Year Racism Claim Over Champagne Dismissed by Tribunal
A glamorous tech worker who sued her employer for racism after alleging her boss deliberately skipped her when pouring champagne at an office party has seen her claim comprehensively rejected by an employment judge. Laoise Foley, a pre-sales consultant earning a substantial £95,000 annually at London digital firm Smart Impact Limited, brought a total of fourteen separate allegations of discrimination, harassment, and victimisation against her managing director, Ahmed Eltohamy.
The Champagne Incident at the Heart of the Claim
The central claim revolved around an incident at a client Christmas event on November 24, 2022. Ms Foley, aged 30, asserted that Mr Eltohamy had gone around the room individually handing glasses of champagne to colleagues but deliberately passed her by because she is Irish. However, Employment Judge Hodgson, presiding at the Central London Employment Tribunal in December, found a markedly different version of events.
'He was pouring glasses and placing them on the table,' Judge Hodgson stated in his ruling. 'People helped themselves, and everyone was welcome to take a glass. She chose not to take a glass.' The judge concluded that Ms Foley had enjoyed precisely the same opportunity as every other person present and that there was no discriminatory intent in the managing director's actions.
A Catalogue of Extraordinary Allegations Dismissed
The champagne claim was merely one in a series of extraordinary allegations presented during the tribunal. Ms Foley also claimed that Mr Eltohamy had once 'jumped back as if pushed' and shouted 'bye' when she passed him in a corridor, which she interpreted as implying she was an 'aggressive Irishwoman'. The judge dismissed this, finding her evidence 'inconsistent and confusing' and ruling that Mr Eltohamy had simply moved aside politely.
Further claims included that a colleague harassed her by sending a WhatsApp message about work while she was on annual leave—a message the judge said fell 'well short' of harassment—and that being sent a viral video of a young Irish girl asking to go to the pub constituted racial harassment. Notably, Ms Foley had responded to that video at the time with a laughing-crying emoji and the words 'Pretty much!', leading the judge to be unconvinced she was genuinely offended.
Internal Grievances and Eventual Dismissal
Prior to the tribunal, Ms Foley had raised four internal grievances with Smart Impact Limited. Only one—concerning an insufficient induction when she joined—was upheld. Complaints that she had been falsely accused of shouting at a colleague and received conflicting instructions from her manager were all dismissed internally.
The tribunal heard that during her eighteen months at the firm, Ms Foley became increasingly withdrawn, refusing to carry out basic duties. She was handed her six-week notice in March 2024. Mr Eltohamy testified that by then, management had reached a 'settled view' that she was 'no longer adequately engaging with her colleagues, excluding herself from the business, not doing what she was asked' and that her overall performance was unsatisfactory.
Judge Hodgson agreed, finding no evidence that the dismissal was connected to any protected act or characteristic. Ms Foley had originally also sued for unfair dismissal but withdrew that claim on the first day of the hearing. Her final claim—that she was sacked in retaliation for raising a sex discrimination concern during her grievance—was thrown out alongside all others.
In a comprehensive ruling, every one of the fourteen allegations brought by the £95,000-a-year tech consultant was dismissed, marking a complete rejection of her claims of workplace racism and victimisation.
