- MR T STREET (SOLICITOR) FOR THE v - Mr M Bishop / Mr R Foreman Draft — 2023

The claimant was dismissed on 4 March 2022 when the respondent ceased trading after Mr Bishop's serious illness diagnosis. The tribunal found that, in principle, the claimant was entitled to statutory notice pay and statutory redundancy pay because his employment ended by reason of redundancy; there was no TUPE transfer to Sandhills Holiday Park Ltd, and the fact that he later obtained work there did not remove the statutory entitlement. The parties agreed that the respondent's figures should be used for pay, giving a weekly wage of £379.30, and the tribunal preferred the respondent's records on start date, finding that employment began on 16 February 2004 and that the claimant therefore had 18 full years' service.

Both claims were presented out of time on 16 December 2022. For the redundancy pay claim, the tribunal applied the just and equitable test under s164(4) ERA 1996 and, having regard to the claimant's explanation for the delay, the relatively short length of the delay, and the lack of evidential prejudice to the respondent, extended time. It referred to Robertson v Bexley Community Centre t/a Leisure Link, British Coal Corporation v Keeble, and Adedeji v University Hospitals Birmingham NHS Trust in explaining the approach to discretion.

For the notice pay claim, the tribunal applied the different statutory test of whether it was reasonably practicable to present the claim in time. It held that the claimant was not prevented from doing so: there was no impediment beyond his reluctance to contact Mr Bishop while he was seriously ill, and he could have researched his rights. The notice pay claim was therefore dismissed, while the redundancy pay claim succeeded and the respondent was ordered to pay £9,292.85.