Northumbria University: Professor accused of slavery wins wrongful dismissal case

Prof Shuang Cang was sacked from her job in January 2019, less than a year after she had been in post

A university academic who was sacked over claims she treated two students as "modern slaves" has been awarded almost £15,000 for wrongful dismissal.

Northumbria University reported Prof Shuang Cang to the police in November 2018 when the PhD students said she forced them to do household chores.

The students feared they would not get their doctorates if they disobeyed her, a tribunal heard.

But the panel found it could not be sure the allegations were true.

The complainants - referred to as ZW and DC - alleged the Chinese-born academic forced them to do jobs such as moving furniture, clearing her garden, cleaning and painting rooms.

The 59-year-old business and law professor, who has worked in UK universities for 30 years, began at Northumbria University in Newcastle on 1 February 2018, having moved from Bournemouth University where she supervised more than 100 Masters students, many of whom were Chinese.

Both ZW, a 34-year-old man from Shanghai who had been in the UK since 2010, and DC, a married woman in her 30s who moved from China in 2012, followed the professor when she moved north.

'Underwear shopping trips'

On 26 November 2018 the university received a complaint about inappropriate behaviour between Prof Cang and the students.

She was reported to Northumbria Police four days later and arrested on suspicion of modern-day slavery and bribery.

The students had claimed Prof Cang would not support their studies if they failed to do tasks such as accompany her on house viewings and shopping trips, the tribunal was told.

It was also alleged: "Prof Cang shouts and yells at (DC) in public and, despite DC saying she felt uncomfortable, had made her go on a shopping trip to buy underwear including helping Prof Cang to undress and expressing an opinion on the underwear she was trying on."

In an interview with police, ZW said he was "threatened, screamed at and treated as a servant" and it was Chinese culture to "do what teachers say".

Prof Cang underwent a disciplinary hearing, after Northumbria Police dropped its investigation, and was dismissed for gross misconduct in January 2019.

However, the tribunal found there were "serious concerns" that ZW committed plagiarism and could not now be found and DC may have had a "motive to lie or exaggerate" in a bid to remain in the UK.

'Lack of corroboration'

Employment Judge Tudor Garnon said he could not be sure the allegations were true and criticised university academics Prof John Wilson for his investigation and Prof John Woodward for the disciplinary hearing he chaired.

"There are huge gaps in the questioning of the students and areas of their evidence which needed to be investigated further to look for real corroboration or the lack of it,' Judge Garnon said.

"Based on what we know now and with the obvious gaps in the questioning of ZW and DC, we are not satisfied the university has shown the serious allegations of Prof Cang taking advantage of them to be more likely than not to have happened."

Prof Chang said the university had acted on "lies" and caused her "stress and anxiety" as well as losing her career.

She was awarded £14,884 for wrongful dismissal, £2,234 for untaken annual leave and £30.34 for unpaid expenses but lost claims of discrimination and harassment based on race.

After the ruling, the university said in a statement that it "respects the tribunal's decision" following the investigation of "serious allegations against a former member of staff".