Mr D Gillespie v Metal Processing Limited — 2023

The claimant, Mr D Gillespie, was employed by Metal Processing Limited as one of two drivers. The respondent’s business was in financial difficulty in August 2022 and the tribunal found that the business was closing because the landlord would not extend the lease on the site. On 4 August 2022, Ms Burcham told the claimant at lunchtime that he was being made redundant with immediate effect. The tribunal accepted that the reason for dismissal was redundancy.

The tribunal directed itself by reference to section 98(4) ERA 1996 and the redundancy authorities it cited, including Williams and ors v Compair Maxam Ltd, Polkey v AE Dayton Services Ltd, Thomas and Betts Manufacturing Co v Harding, Kvaerner Oil and Gas Ltd v Parker, British Aerospace plc v Green, De Grasse v Stockwell Tools Ltd, and Fisher v Hoopoe Finance Ltd. It found that the respondent’s process did not involve any warning or consultation with the claimant about his provisional selection, the criteria used, or the application of those criteria to him.

The tribunal also found the basis for selection to be opaque. Although the respondent said the claimant had been selected against skill set, attendance, reliability and performance, there was no evidence that he was unreliable or performed badly, and it was unclear what extra skills were required for the closure process. The tribunal noted that Mr Brill, the other driver, remained employed until 2 February 2023, so there was plainly a comparison between the two drivers. It concluded that the selection process was unfair and that there was no evidential basis for finding the dismissal fair and reasonable.

On remedy, the tribunal recorded that the claimant had already received payment in lieu of notice and statutory redundancy pay. It therefore said he was not entitled to a basic award. It awarded compensatory loss of £6,278.38 made up of two weeks’ net pay while unemployed, the difference between new and previous net earnings from 31 August 2022 to 2 February 2023, loss of bonus, pension loss, and loss of statutory rights. The total award was £6,278.38, and the tribunal noted that no grossing up was needed because the sum was below £30,000.