Mr John Snell v PGB Lifts Limited — 2022

The claimant, Mr John Snell, was employed by PGB Lifts Limited from 7 January 2019 to 12 April 2021. The respondent did not engage with ACAS conciliation or attend the tribunal hearing. The tribunal accepted the claimant’s evidence, found that he worked the hours required under his contract, and found that the respondent’s deduction from his final pay was based on a dispute about timesheets and alleged falsification.

On unfair dismissal, the tribunal applied section 98 ERA 1996 and the principles in Orr v Milton Keynes Council and British Homes Stores Ltd v Burchell, including the requirement for a reasonable investigation and a reasonable belief in misconduct. It found that the respondent had no reasonable belief that the claimant had committed gross misconduct or even misconduct because there was no investigation and no opportunity for the claimant to answer the allegations. The tribunal also found that the dismissal was not genuinely related to conduct, noting that Mr Bazela later offered the claimant work again in a different business on a self-employed basis.

The tribunal held that the respondent failed to follow the Acas Code of Practice on disciplinary and grievance procedures and that this failure was unreasonable. It considered it just and equitable to increase the compensatory award by 25%. The unfair dismissal remedy comprised a basic award of £942.30 and a compensatory award of £2,028.04, which included loss of basic salary, loss of statutory rights, and the 25% uplift.

The tribunal also upheld the notice pay claim as wrongful dismissal and the unlawful deduction from wages claim. It found that the claimant was entitled to one month’s notice and had not committed gross misconduct, so notice pay of £1,693.51 was due. It further found that the deduction of 33 hours from the final salary was unlawful and awarded £322.42. The claimant withdrew a separate £10 per day travel allowance element from his schedule of loss after the tribunal queried it.