Sacked Bristol university professor's compensation halved

Sacked Bristol University professor David Miller stands to lose half his potential compensation as a result of statements he made following his firing by the university in October 2021.

An employment tribunal ruled in February 2024 that Miller had been unfairly dismissed and that his anti-Zionist beliefs qualified as a protected characteristic under the 2010 Equality Act.

This week, the 120-page judgment of the tribunal was published, expanding on the reasoning behind its decision. Miller had taken Bristol University to the tribunal to challenge his dismissal.

The tribunal judge, Rohan Pirani, said: “Although many would vehemently and cogently disagree with [Miller]’s analysis of politics and history, others have the same or similar beliefs.

“We find that he has established that [the criteria] have been met and that his belief amounted to a philosophical belief.”

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Miller, who lectured at the university on political sociology, told the panel he thought Zionism was “inherently racist, imperialist and colonial”. Two Jewish students had complained to Bristol about the way in which Miller had expressed his views, telling the administration that they felt “unsafe” and intimidated on campus.

Specifically, the students had complained about a 2019 lecture by Miller in which he identified Zionism as one of the five pillars of Islamophobia. The Community Security Trust described Miller’s remarks were a “disgraceful slur”.

In his evidence to the tribunal, Miller had insisted that Zionism was “ideologically bound to lead to the practices of apartheid, ethnic cleansing and genocide in pursuit of territorial control and expansion”. But he also maintained that his anti-Zionism did not equate to opposition towards Jews.

After the February ruling was announced, Jonathan Turner, chief executive of UK Lawyers for Israel, said Miller had won only a “partial victory. He was criticised by the tribunal for ‘culpable and blameworthy’ conduct that contributed to his dismissal”.

Following his dismissal Miller posted comments on social media in August 2023 saying that “Jews are not discriminated against”, they are “overrepresented” and that “Judeophobia barely exists these days”.

Because of this, the tribunal further found that, had Miller still been employed at the time, there was a 30 per cent chance that he would have been dismissed shortly after these further comments. This affects the level of damages occasioned by the unfair dismissal and discrimination claims.

In any case, the tribunal ruled that Miller’s conduct — the ‘culpable and blameworthy’ behaviour referred to in February by UKLFI — meant that any compensation he is due to receive for unfair dismissal should be halved. The exact amount will be determined by a review committee and may not be made public.

The panel said: “In relation to the unfair dismissal claim, the basic and compensatory awards are reduced by 50 per cent in accordance with sections 122(2) and 123(6) respectively of the Employment Rights Act 1996. This is because the claimant’s dismissal was caused or contributed to by his own actions and it is just and equitable to reduce the said awards by 50 per cent”.

Miller had also brought claims against Bristol for direct discrimination and harassment, but these claims were dismissed by the panel.