In person For the v Ms F Mewies, Solicitor — 2020

Mr S Locker-Townsend brought claims for unlawful deductions from wages, holiday pay, and breach of contract arising from alleged unpaid notice pay and commission. At the hearing he confirmed that he was not bringing a notice pay claim. The parties agreed that 4.5 days' holiday pay had accrued on termination, and the tribunal ordered the Respondent to pay £510.53 gross for that amount.

The remaining dispute concerned commission said to be due in respect of two placements, Itelligence AG and Heidelberg Cement, allegedly payable in March 2020. The contract provided that the Claimant had no contractual right to commission, and that any commission would be calculated in accordance with the Respondent's commission policy. The tribunal accepted that the policy was available on the HR portal and that the Claimant had access to it.

The policy stated that an employee had to be in employment and not under notice of termination to be eligible for commission, and that commission was paid in arrears two months after the candidate's start date once the client invoice had been paid. The tribunal found that the Claimant was under notice on 18 and 19 March 2020, so he was not eligible for commission in March 2020. It found no custom or practice giving a different result, held that there was no contractual entitlement to the commission claimed, and concluded that the failure to pay it was neither a breach of contract nor an unlawful deduction from wages because the commission was not properly payable.