Mr H Worton v Miramar 246 Limited (In voluntary liquidation) — 2023

Mr H Worton was employed by Miramar 246 Limited from 30 June 2020 to 3 May 2023 as a pizza chef. The respondent did not present a response, so the tribunal proceeded under rule 21 on the material available. The claimant's original claim form referred to redundancy payment, wrongful dismissal or notice pay, holiday pay, and arrears of pay, but the judgment expressly determined only the arrears-of-pay and notice-pay issues.

On the evidence before it, the tribunal found that the claimant worked an average of 38 hours a week at £10.50 an hour, with gross weekly pay of about £400 and net pay of about £349. It found that, at dismissal, the respondent had not paid for 90 hours worked in the previous two weeks, leaving £945 due by 5 May 2023, and that notice pay was also unpaid. The tribunal held that the unlawful deduction of wages claim and the breach of contract claim were well founded and succeeded.

The tribunal ordered the respondent to pay £945 gross for arrears of pay and £349 in damages for notice, each less any amount already paid by the Secretary of State in respect of the relevant element. The reasons state that the claimant was entitled to one week's notice of termination, while the operative paragraph refers to failure to give 2 weeks' notice; both passages support the award being for unpaid notice rather than any broader dismissal remedy.