Mr Julio Major, union representative For the v Mr Roman Scuplak, consultant Interpreter: Ms Tatiana Crespo Hale — 2021

The claimant brought a claim for unlawful deduction from wages in relation to alleged unpaid hours for taking out and placing garbage containers between 1 July 2019 and 7 May 2021. The tribunal recorded that he had started work as a cleaner on 1 September 2017, that he was paid £9.50 per hour during 2019 to 2021, and that he later complained internally about alleged underpayment after returning from sickness absence in November 2022.

The tribunal held that the claim was out of time under section 23 of the Employment Rights Act 1996. It accepted that the claimant did not become aware of the alleged extra payment to the person covering his work until November 2022, but concluded that from then onwards it was reasonably practicable to present a claim while also pursuing the respondent's internal process. It also found that, even if that were wrong, the claimant could have presented the claim after receiving the outcome letter of 20 January 2023 or after the further letter of 31 March 2023, and that the additional delay before the ET1 was lodged on 13 April 2023 was unexplained.

In the alternative, the tribunal said the claim would have failed on the merits. It was not satisfied that there had been an agreement that the claimant should be paid extra for taking out the bins during the claimed period, or that he had in fact worked unpaid hours for which he was not paid. The tribunal noted the absence of cogent evidence challenging payslips or showing unpaid work, and found it most likely on the balance of probabilities that a Peabody caretaker was doing the work instead. The judgment therefore dismissed the unlawful deduction from wages claim and recorded no award.