Ms S Ballyntine v Willows Support Services Limited — 2021

Ms S Ballyntine brought a claim for unlawful deductions from wages under section 13 of the Employment Rights Act 1996, saying she had not been paid for hours worked in September, October and November 2020 as a Support Worker. The parties agreed that the September 2020 shortfall of £320.02 had been paid in October 2020, so the tribunal did not have to determine that issue. The dispute before the tribunal was whether there had been unlawful deductions in respect of October and November 2020 pay.

The tribunal accepted that the respondent had introduced the Blip app from 4 September 2020 and that, where no app data was available, it was reasonable to use rotas submitted by managers to calculate hours and pay. It found that the claimant's unsigned timesheets were not shown to have been approved or submitted to her manager at the time, and on that evidence it could not conclude that the claimant had worked the hours she claimed for October and November 2020 or that the claimed sums were properly payable.

On the respondent's own investigation, the tribunal recorded that the claimant was owed a further £461.67 for September 2020, that October 2020 involved an overpayment of £72.08 in respect of eight hours' holiday, and that November 2020 contained an underpayment of £2.88 because the incorrect hourly rate of £8.89 had been used. The tribunal ordered the respondent to pay the gross sum of £392.47, subject to deductions for tax and national insurance.