Mr Ian McDonald v Alara Services Group Ltd — 2021

The hearing was listed for 19 July 2021 and later converted to a CVP hearing. By 2.05 pm neither party had joined, so the tribunal instructed the clerk to make telephone enquiries. The claimant said he was unaware of the hearing, could not access his email account for financial reasons, and did not have time to write to the tribunal; the respondent could not be reached beyond a voicemail and an unobtainable number.

Applying rule 47 of the Employment Tribunals (Constitution and Rules of Procedure) Regulations 2013, the Employment Judge considered the information available after practicable enquiries. The judge noted that the claimant had received earlier correspondence, had looked at his emails up to at least early December 2020, and had therefore had notice of the hearing arrangements. The judge also observed that, if the claimant was unaware of the CVP format, that did not explain why he did not attend in person under the original notice or contact the tribunal in advance.

The tribunal further noted that the claimant appeared not to have complied with the case management orders and had not followed through on his stated intention to provide a counter statement. Although the respondent was also absent, the judge stated that it was the claimant's claim and the onus was on him to attend and give evidence. The claim was therefore dismissed under rule 47, and the reasons do not record any separate merits determination or monetary award.