Mr J Moore v The Black Dog Saloon Limited — 2022

Mr J Moore did not attend the CVP hearing on 14 October 2022. Employment Judge Beever was satisfied that the hearing should proceed in his absence under rule 47 after checking that notice had been sent to the correct address and that the clerk's telephone and email enquiries had received no response.

The claimant's unfair dismissal claim was dismissed. The tribunal said that, on the claimant's own case, his employment ran from 15 April 2021 to 29 October 2021, so he did not have the two years' qualifying service required for an ordinary unfair dismissal claim.

The claimant's money claims were allowed to the extent accepted by the respondent: £400 for a week in hand, £400 for notice pay, £1,040 for accrued holiday pay, and £409.92 for expenses, totalling £2,249.92. The tribunal recorded these as claims for unlawful deduction from wages, breach of contract, and holiday pay.

The respondent's employer contract counterclaim was also considered. Mr Mages gave evidence which the tribunal accepted as reliable, and the tribunal allowed only part of the respondent's claimed loss, focusing on the claimant's obligation to take reasonable care of the respondent's property. The allowed items totalled £2,446.07, including losses for drinks equipment, replacement locks, a replacement laptop, cleaning the kitchen area, a damaged dishwasher, and removal of the claimant's property.

Balancing the claimant's successful money claims against the respondent's counterclaim, the tribunal ordered the claimant to pay the respondent the net sum of £196.15.