Miss C Creasey v VPS PVT Limited — 2023

The respondent's response had already been dismissed on 31 October 2022 for failure to comply with unless orders. At the remedy hearing on 15 February 2023 before Employment Judge Welch sitting alone, the tribunal applied rules 21 and 28 of the Employment Tribunals Rules of Procedure 2013 and proceeded on the basis that no response had been presented.

Judgment was entered for the claimant on the pleaded liability claims. The tribunal found that she had been unfairly dismissed; that the respondent discriminated against her because of sex and/or pregnancy and maternity by failing to carry out a pregnancy-related health and safety risk assessment, refusing to suspend her on maternity grounds, and dismissing her; that she was victimised by the failure to pay wages on 1 April 2021 and by dismissal; and that her claims for holiday pay, breach of contract notice pay, and unlawful deductions from wages succeeded.

On remedy, the tribunal accepted the claimant as honest and credible. It found her weekly pay was £141.60 and awarded a basic award of £566.40 and a compensatory award of £400 for unfair dismissal, together with £84.92 for holiday pay, £708.00 for unlawful deductions, and £566.40 for notice pay. It found that earnings losses ended when her maternity leave ended on 29 April 2022 because she would not have returned to work due to childcare costs, so there was no further loss of earnings award for discrimination or unfair dismissal. For discrimination, the tribunal made a global injury to feelings award of £15,000 in the middle Vento band, awarded no separate sum for victimisation, applied a 25% ACAS uplift of £4,189.83, and awarded interest of £2,307.95 on the injury to feelings award from 15 March 2021 to 15 February 2023, producing a total gross award of £23,823.50.