Mr Michael Goddard v MB Evans Limited — 2023

Employment Judge Grubb, sitting alone at Cardiff Employment Tribunal, recorded that the claimant's claim for a protective payment under section 189 of the Trade Union and Labour Relations (Consolidation) Act 1992 was dismissed following withdrawal. The tribunal also rejected the claimant's complaint of unauthorised deductions from wages in respect of holiday pay, finding that he had not been subjected to unlawful deductions contrary to section 13 of the Employment Rights Act 1996. A further complaint that the claimant had not been provided with true written reasons for dismissal contrary to section 92 of the 1996 Act was also found not well-founded.

The tribunal upheld the claimant's breach of contract claim, finding that MB Evans Limited dismissed him without notice. It ordered the respondent to pay £5,136 notice pay, calculated as 12 weeks at the claimant's net weekly pay of £428. The judgment states that this sum was net of tax and national insurance.

The unfair dismissal claim also succeeded. The tribunal found that the respondent had unfairly dismissed the claimant contrary to section 94 of the Employment Rights Act 1996 and awarded a basic award of £16,800, calculated as 30 qualifying weeks at a gross weekly pay of £560. The claimant's date of birth was recorded as 31 July 1960, his employment start date as 1997, his effective date of termination as 25 March 2022, and his continuous service as 25 years.

The tribunal reduced the period of loss for any compensatory award by 100% under the principles of Polkey v A E Dayton Services. As a result, no compensatory award was payable. The recoupment section recorded a prescribed period from 25 March 2022 to 31 January 2023, a total award of £21,936, a prescribed element of £0, and a balance of £21,936.