Mr D.McLean v Staffline Recruitment Limited — 2021

The claimant was an agency worker paid weekly when allocated work and after submitting timesheets. He accepted that, apart from furlough, he had received his full contractual entitlement. The remaining dispute was whether his furlough pay had been calculated below what was properly payable.

The tribunal rejected the respondent's submission that the CJRS calculation methods were irrelevant to the claimant's contractual relationship, holding that the claimant was entitled at least to the sum claimed by the respondent from HMRC. It found the claimant's argument, based on 80% of one payslip, did not reflect the applicable government guidance. On the calculation considered by the tribunal, the claimant had received more than the respondent would have recouped from HMRC and therefore had received what was properly payable.

The tribunal also considered the claimant's argument that delayed payments caused him to pawn items and incur interest. Although it accepted he had borrowed money and suffered a loss, it found there had been no deliberate non-payment and that the circumstances involved SSP, payroll timing, processing documents and furlough arrangements. It decided this was not an appropriate case to exercise its discretion to award compensation for late payment, and dismissed the complaint.