Heskett v Secretary of State for Justice [2020]

The claimant is employed as a probation officer by an executive agency of the defendant.  The challenge was in relation to the agency’s pay progression policy, where there had been a limitation imposed post-economic downturn in 2010.  The previous policy allowed probation officers to progress three pay points per year, yet the new policy only allowed one pay point progression per year. The argument raised by the claimant was that it would take younger employees significantly longer to get to the top of the pay band compared to the older employees who had already been able to avail of the older policy thus giving them greater pay and pension benefits. 

The Employment Tribunal