Ms MM Reis Mano v Regional Care Peterborough — 2020

The tribunal found that Mr Cole told the claimant in a WhatsApp call on 27 February 2020 that she had been sacked and was not to set foot in the respondent's premises again. It rejected his later explanation that he had only asked her to reflect on her position, and it treated the later WhatsApp message to other staff saying she no longer worked for Regional Care as consistent with the claimant's account.

The tribunal held that the respondent had no fair reason for dismissing her. It rejected the assertions that the claimant had been performing badly or had breached contract by diverting business to JR, finding no credible documentary evidence of performance concerns, no reliable investigation before 26 February 2020, and no basis for the suggested collusion with SN. It also found that the later letters and disciplinary correspondence were created after the dismissal to construct a defence and reduce compensation.

On remedy, the tribunal found the effective date of termination was 27 February 2020. Using the claimant's two years' service, age 45, and gross weekly pay of £461.53, it awarded a basic award of £1,384.59. It assessed compensatory loss at £10,000, taking into account her net weekly pay of £381.85, the evidence of illness and the effect of the Covid-19 pandemic, and added £500 for loss of statutory rights, giving an unfair dismissal subtotal of £11,884.59 before uplift.

The tribunal then applied a 25% uplift under s.207A of the Trade Union and Labour Relations (Consolidation) Act 1992 because the respondent failed to follow any procedure and had unreasonably attempted to cover up what had happened. It also upheld the separate annual leave claim, accepting that two weeks' untaken holiday were due and awarding £923.06. The overall award was therefore £15,779.06.