Mrs I Mokrzynska v Short Stay (NW) Limited — 2021

This was a remote case management hearing before Employment Judge Shotter on 15 December 2020 in which the claimant, Mrs I Mokrzynska, pursued a claim for payments said to be due under the Furlough Scheme between April and August 2020. The respondent did not attend. The tribunal recorded that the case was not ready for trial and that the claimant said she had sent documents, including a translated Polish email said to confirm she would be paid under the Furlough Scheme and should not take another job, but that the document could not be found on the tribunal file.

The claimant said her employment continued and that she had been placed on furlough. The respondent's position, as recorded by the tribunal, was that the claimant was on a zero-hours contract and that her employment ended on 31 March 2020. The tribunal noted that, if that account were accepted, statutory notice did not appear to have been paid. No finding was made on those competing positions at this hearing.

The tribunal adjourned the claim in the interests of justice so that both parties could prepare and present their evidence at a liability hearing. It also directed that a Polish interpreter be arranged for the final hearing and recorded the respondent's correct name as Short Stay (NW) Limited.