Mr G A Wontumi v Ethos Family Care Services Limited — 2023

The claimant was employed as a senior support worker from 18 July 2022. On 24 November 2022 he was injured at work when a service user attacked him and he later produced sick notes covering periods from 2 to 16 December 2022 and then January to April 2023. The tribunal found there were no written terms about sick pay, accepted the respondent's evidence that it paid statutory sick pay only, and found no contractual right to full pay or enhanced sick pay.

The unlawful deduction from wages claim failed in relation to the shift shown on the roster for 27 November 2022 because the tribunal found that date fell in the next pay period and the claimant accepted he was off sick and unable to work it. It also failed in relation to the later sickness periods because the money claimed to top up statutory sick pay was not properly payable. The tribunal noted that statutory sick pay for the relevant period was £99.35 a week and that the claimant's payslips showed payments of £93.56 in several weeks and later £73.69, but held there was no contractual entitlement to sums above statutory sick pay.

The claimant also said that tax and national insurance deductions had not been paid to HMRC. The tribunal preferred the respondent's evidence, including the P45 and payslips, and found on the balance of probabilities that the deductions had been paid appropriately. It therefore dismissed the unlawful deduction from wages claim in its entirety.

The notice pay claim was recorded as dismissed on withdrawal by the claimant. The tribunal also noted that the claimant had not formally pleaded unfair dismissal and, in any event, had less than two years' service.