In person For the v South Northants home care — 2021

The claimant worked for the respondent as a mobile carer from August 2020. The tribunal found that driving from home to clients and between clients was an essential and integral part of the job. On 14 December 2020 the claimant's driving licence was revoked, and the tribunal accepted that from that point she could no longer lawfully drive. The respondent did not attend the hearing, so the tribunal proceeded on the ET1, ET3, payslips, emails, and the claimant's oral evidence.

The tribunal found that the claimant had not been paid for work done up to 14 December 2020. It accepted the claimant's evidence that the relevant net figure was £1,522.56, and ordered that sum to be paid. It rejected the respondent's attempt to justify deductions by reference to management cover costs, holding that a notional charge for salaried managers did not amount to damages recoverable from the claimant and that there was no contractual basis shown for the deduction.

The holiday pay claim also succeeded. The claimant agreed the respondent's calculation of holiday pay at £594.00, and the tribunal found that amount had not been paid. The respondent's suggestion that accrued holiday could be forfeited was rejected; the tribunal said that any right to forfeit untaken holiday had been abolished when the Working Time Regulations 1998 came into force.

The claim for pay during the notice period failed. The tribunal found that the claimant's employment included a contractual obligation to be available to drive to work, that loss of the driving licence ended the contract on 14 December 2020, and that the claimant was not available for work in her contractual capacity. It also found that the respondent was under no obligation to reorganise the rota so that the claimant could be given walking work. The tribunal made no award under section 38 of the Employment Act 2002.