Mr O Wilhelm v Bon Appetit Foodie Ltd — 2024

This was an uncontested hearing at Manchester (by CVP) before Employment Judge R. Lloyd; the Respondent did not attend and had played no part in the claim. The Tribunal found that the Respondent had made unauthorised deductions from the Claimant's wages by deducting 30 minutes per day for a lunch break the Claimant was not permitted to take, calculated across 260 working days in 2022 and 236 working days in 2023 at the relevant national minimum wage. The Tribunal also found that the Respondent had failed to provide a written statement of the main terms of employment contrary to section 1 of the Employment Rights Act 1996, and that the Claimant was owed pay for 28 days of untaken statutory leave on termination.

On the discrimination claims, the Tribunal upheld the complaint of direct race discrimination identified in paragraphs 27.1.1 and 27.1.2 of the case management order of 16 May 2024, accepting the Claimant as a credible witness and finding that his shifts were reduced from five to three days per week between 1 October 2023 and the end of his employment on 28 November 2023 to allow Urdu-speaking workers more shifts, and that he was treated less favourably because of his race. The complaint of age discrimination was not made out and was dismissed.

The Respondent was ordered to pay a total of £8,987.08, comprising £2,422.96 for unlawful deductions from wages, £2,625.84 for untaken holiday, £1,500 for injury to feelings, £1,500.48 for the reduction in shifts, and £937.80 for failure to provide a contract of employment. Tax and national insurance fall to be deducted from the wage-related elements. The Tribunal also gave notice that interest under the Employment Tribunals (Interest) Order 1990 would accrue from 20 September 2024 at the stipulated rate of 8% per annum if the award was not paid within 14 days of 19 September 2024.