Mr G Kulatilleke v Capital Staffing Services Limited — 2022

The claimant provided IT services to the respondent from 17 October 2017 to 23 July 2018. The Tribunal accepted that he was engaged on a zero-hours basis at £30 per hour, that he performed the work personally, and that he used the respondent’s equipment, email address and office facilities. Applying Ready Mixed Concrete, Cotswold Developments v Williams, Autoclenz and the statutory worker definition, the Tribunal found that he was at least a worker and not self-employed, but that the evidence did not establish the mutuality and control needed for a contract of employment.

On that basis, the claimant’s breach of contract claim failed, including his argument that he was entitled to the balance of an alleged fixed-term contract, and his notice-pay/dismissal-related claim for £2,400 also failed because he was not an employee and had no notice entitlement. The earlier unfair dismissal claim had been withdrawn and was dismissed on withdrawal. The Tribunal also rejected the claim for tax-related deductions against the respondent and said any repayment issue should be taken up with HMRC; it had no jurisdiction to order the respondent to provide a P60.

The Tribunal upheld the claim for unpaid wages in the sum of £91.60 gross for July 2018. It also upheld the holiday pay claim, finding that the claimant had worked 280 days, accrued 4.3 weeks of leave, and that his average weekly wage for holiday-pay purposes was £443.52 gross, producing an award of £1,907.14 gross.

Finally, the Tribunal awarded 4 weeks’ pay under s38 Employment Act 2002 because the claimant had not been given a written statement of particulars despite requesting one. Using the earnings period available on the papers, it calculated the award at £1,474.80. The total award therefore came to £3,473.54 gross.