Mr A Emmerson v Riverside Beach Hotel Ltd. — 2023

The case came back before Employment Judge Langridge on 5 December 2023 after an earlier hearing at which the claimant did not attend. The claimant apologised and said his phone had been faulty. The hearing was listed to consider whether some or all claims should be struck out, and the parties also addressed the limited documentary evidence produced by the respondent.

The claimant withdrew his claims about provision of meals, rest breaks and a minimum number of working hours a week after accepting that the respondent had not breached any legal rights in relation to those matters. During the hearing the parties also agreed the calculation of holiday pay, and the respondent agreed to make payments of £47.93 for holiday pay and £16 for tips, without admission of liability and subject to statutory deductions.

The remaining disputed issue was the claimant's entitlement to one week's notice. The tribunal had to decide whether the respondent was entitled to terminate the employment without notice because of the claimant's conduct. The respondent relied on concerns about the claimant's behaviour towards a female colleague, who had complained about unwanted attention, together with a statement from that employee and screenshots of messages obtained in May 2023.

The claimant did not challenge the screenshots, and the tribunal was satisfied on the balance of probabilities that the evidence supported the respondent's position. It found that the respondent had acted on that evidence when it dismissed the claimant without notice, and that this was a genuine decision based on the effect of the behaviour on the female colleague and a desire to protect her in the workplace. The tribunal concluded that the respondent could prove a reason to dismiss without notice, so the notice claim had no reasonable prospect of success and was struck out under Rule 37(1)(a). Once all claims had been disposed of, there was no remaining claim under section 38 of the Employment Act 2002 for failure to provide written particulars of employment.