No Appearance For the v Ultrafilter Medical Ltd — 2023

Mr I Preutescu was employed by Ultrafilter Medical Limited as a Setter Supervisor. The claim form presented on 4 August 2023 sought £500 for an unpaid bonus and £1,012.66 for 10 days unpaid holiday pay, both claimed as gross sums. The respondent was served but filed no response.

The tribunal listed the case for a hearing before Employment Judge Gaskell sitting alone. Although a schedule of loss later added a further £810.13 for eight additional days of unpaid holiday pay, the claimant did not attend the hearing and asked that the matter be dealt with on the papers, while also indicating he would have preferred an adjournment. The judge decided not to adjourn, noting that the hearing had been fixed and notified more than three months earlier and that judicial time had been allocated.

In the absence of any response from the respondent and with no appearance or submissions at the hearing, the tribunal was content to give judgment for the sums claimed in the claim form. It awarded £500 gross for unpaid wages (bonus) and £1,012.66 gross for unpaid holiday pay.

The tribunal did not award the additional sum of £810.13 sought in the schedule of loss, because the respondent had had no formal opportunity to consider that expanded claim and respond to it. The total award was therefore £1,512.66 gross, payable subject to tax and national insurance deductions where due.