A South Asian consultant accused an NHS trust of forcing him into modern slavery alleging that his managers behaved in a “threatening manner” and forced him into “enslavement”.
The ophthalmologist Dr. Shankar Chappiti has lodged a complaint at the Birmingham employment tribunal concerning managers at New Cross hospital and is now running a fundraiser for the said cause. In his complaint against the arm of the Royal Wolverhampton Trust, he has alleged that in 2014, he began holding extra clinics on Saturdays to help his department clear their waiting list. Yet, in early 2018, he was accused by his senior managers of committing fraud of upto £56,000 as he had not seen enough patients in each clinic. Chappiti claimed the unpaid work amounted to modern slavery under the Modern Slavery Act 2015 and the European convention on human rights.
He has also alleged that he was told that this would result in a “terrible future for his family”; his children “would not have their father around and there would be no income to pay the family mortgage” and was told to “keep [his] mouth shut” and not speak to anyone about the arrangement. He is now asking the tribunal for a declaration that he was forced to engage in modern slavery and for financial compensation. And the ophthalmologist claims that he is now being diagnosed with post-traumatic stress disorder, anxiety and depression.
The 50 year-old British Asian doctor graduated from St George's Hospital Medical School and has now said that the trust, where he has worked for 18 years, discriminated against him because of his race and subjected him to race-related harassment, creating an “intimidating, hostile, degrading, humiliating and offensive environment” for him.
He also alleged the trust made unauthorised deductions from his wages and leaked details of the fraud allegation to the press.
