Miss M Saint-Andre v Pickle and Jam Limited, trading as Lupo Bros (in creditors’ voluntary liquidation) — 2023

The claimant, a waitress, brought claims including sex-related harassment, a redundancy payment, and other payments said to be unpaid wages. The respondent did not attend the hearing, but its earlier email agreed with the claimant's account of the incident on 15 May 2022, characterising it as an inappropriate joke. The tribunal found there was no factual dispute on the material points.

On the wage and redundancy heads, the claimant accepted she was not entitled to a redundancy payment because she did not have two years' service. She also accepted that her final wage payment, although paid 15 days late, caused her no financial loss, and that no further sums were owed. Those claims were dismissed upon withdrawal.

The tribunal found that the General Manager's comment, "I will follow behind you like a rapist," amounted both to unwanted conduct related to sex and to unwanted conduct of a sexual nature within section 26 of the Equality Act 2010. Because the conduct occurred during working hours in the course of the General Manager's employment, the respondent was liable for it. The tribunal accepted that the incident had continuing effects on the claimant, but found no personal injury and no basis for aggravated or exemplary damages.

Applying the Vento bands, the tribunal placed the case in the lower band as a one-off incident and awarded £5,000 for injury to feelings. It also awarded simple interest at 8% under the Employment Tribunals (Interest on Awards in Discrimination Cases) Regulations 1996, calculated at £402.19 from the date of the discriminatory act to 17 May 2023, bringing the total award to £5,402.19.