A rail worker forced out of his job after nearly 30 years in the industry has won £61,000 damages.

Colin Burch was a station accounts manager until he had to take time off with ulcerative colitis in September 2003.

Southern, his employer, refused to let him return to the same position, instead offering him a lower level job.

Last year the London South Tribunal ruled the 49-year-old worker had been unfairly dismissed and awarded him £61,345 for loss of earnings and pension.

Southern contested this figure but it has now been upheld.

Mr Burch, from Telscombe Cliffs, said: "I feel they treated me very shabbily.

"I intended to continue onwards and upwards until my retirement and I was really shocked they were prepared to dispense with me the way they did, especially after nearly 30 years of service."

Mr Burch, whose legal fees were funded by the Transport Salaried Staffs' Association union (TSSA), now works as a driver for Brighton and Hove Buses.

His father Walter Burch was manager of Brighton train station and Colin followed him into the business when he left school, starting as a pay roll clerk for British Rail.

Mr Burch was diagnosed with irritable bowel syndrome more than 20 years ago and has suffered from ulcerative colitis for some years.

The condition can cause increased trips to the toilet and can make sufferers feel drained of energy.

Mr Burch became ill in September 2003. His GP said the attack was partly caused by work-related stress.

He arranged for his deputy to take over his duties managing 12 people at the company's head office in Croydon and took time off. However, he claims he would have returned to work by May 2004.

Representatives of Southern visited Mr Burch at home on two occasions. He was then given 12 weeks notice and offered a job at a lower level.

He said: "They felt my stress was something they could do something about by offering me a job at a lower rate of pay and lower responsibility, working as part of the team that I managed.

"They weren't prepared to take me back in my job because they felt they couldn't get any adequate medical information that I would have been fit and well by the deadline they set.

My deputy had stepped up and his deputy took his job. From Southern's perspective it was a seamless transfer.

"The whole situation has been extremely upsetting and frustrating. I just hope now their appeal against my compensation has failed, Southern will have learned their lesson."

Mr Burch lost his job in April 2004. He worked at Sainsbury's in Newhaven before becoming a bus driver in June 2004. He earns two thirds of his former salary. His ambition is to move back into a management role outside the rail industry.

David Sorensen, of Morrish & Co, which represented Mr Burch, said: "Southern dismissed Colin Burch, a longterm employee, after being off sick for just four months.

"Their procedure was flawed because of a lack of consultation and failure to obtain enough medical evidence.

"He was treated very shabbily, which is why the appeal against the compensation failed on all counts. This is the third time in six months that we, along with the TSSA, have brought a case to tribunal and won against this organisation.

I hope the message is finally getting through that you need to treat your staff fairly or there will be consequences."

In a statement, Southern said: "Southern is disappointed not to have won this appeal. However, we believe all necessary steps were taken to help Colin. This extended to offering him alternative employment within the company, which he declined."