Claimant v 06233341 Ltd — 2024

At a remedy hearing on 6 February 2024, the Tribunal lifted the stay on Mr W Lake's claim against the Third Respondent (renamed 06233341 Limited following restoration to the Companies Register) and determined remedy. The Tribunal had previously found that the claimant's employment transferred from the Second Respondent to the Third Respondent on 3 September 2018 under regulation 4(1) of TUPE 2006. Despite repeated attempts to make contact, the claimant was never provided with work or pay by the Third Respondent, which directed him back to the Second Respondent; the Tribunal found this amounted to a dismissal by the Third Respondent, and as no economic, technical or organisational defence was established, it was an automatic unfair dismissal under regulation 7(1) of TUPE 2006. In the alternative, the Tribunal found the dismissal would also have been unfair on ordinary principles under sections 94 and 98 ERA 1996 because there was no letter of dismissal, disciplinary hearing or appeal.

On remedy, the Tribunal accepted the claimant's uncontested evidence that his sick leave (from 25 June 2018) was a temporary absence connected with a family member's ill health and found, on the balance of probabilities, that he would have returned to work before exhausting full sick pay and earned full pay for 12 months; it therefore awarded the compensatory sum claimed. A 20% ACAS uplift under section 207A TULRCA 1992 was applied to reflect the failure to follow the ACAS code, short of the maximum 25% because some process had occurred. Accrued but untaken annual leave under the Working Time Regulations 1998 was awarded as claimed.

Claims for wrongful dismissal, unlawful deductions from wages and breach of contract were found to overlap with the compensatory award and no separate awards were made to avoid double recovery. The claim for failure to inform and consult under regulation 15 TUPE 2006 did not succeed, the Tribunal following Nationwide Building Society v Benn on standing, though it indicated 10 weeks' pay would otherwise have been appropriate. The total sum ordered was £27,815.02.