Others v University of Warwick — 2024

This was a preliminary hearing on the University of Warwick's application to strike out parts of claims brought by Dr J Thornby and 34 others, who contended that they had been employees or workers while carrying out Residential Life Team roles including Resident Tutor, Sub-warden, Deputy Warden and Warden. The respondent denied worker or employee status. The status issue, and claims depending on it including National Minimum Wage, holiday pay, unfair dismissal and other complaints, were not determined at this hearing.

The tribunal struck out the parts of the claims seeking wages above the National Minimum Wage. The claimants argued for an implied salary based on the respondent's pay scales and other employee benefits. Employment Judge Kenward held that there was no reasonable prospect of establishing such implied terms because the Volunteer Agreements expressly provided that the claimants were not entitled to remuneration, subject to accommodation, and any statutory implication under section 17 of the National Minimum Wage Act 1998 would extend only to National Minimum Wage entitlement if worker or employee status were later established.

The tribunal also struck out the parts of the claims seeking wages beyond two years' back pay, except in relation to holiday pay. The claimants relied by analogy on King v Sash Window Workshop Ltd and Smith v Pimlico Plumbers Ltd, arguing that they had been prevented from exercising rights because of how their status had been presented. The tribunal held that King concerned paid annual leave rights derived from the Working Time Directive and did not provide a basis to disapply the two-year limitation introduced into section 23 of the Employment Rights Act 1996 for ordinary unlawful deduction from wages claims.

The respondent applied for costs of £13,710 after the strike-out decision. The tribunal found in principle that the grounds for a costs order were met under rules 76(1)(a) and 76(1)(b), but made no costs order at this stage because the claimants' means and the reasonableness and proportionality of the amount claimed had not yet been considered. Further consideration of costs was reserved until after the preliminary hearing on status.