Mr N Hood v Represented by Mr A Reid Solicitor Manser Saxon Limited — 2020

The claimant, Mr Neil Hood, was employed by Manser Saxon Limited from 1 August 2019 on a gross annual salary of £90,000, paid monthly at £7,500. He had a one-month notice period and an annual holiday entitlement of 30 days. The respondent did not attend the final hearing. The tribunal accepted the claimant's oral evidence and supporting documents, including payslips, expense records, and lender and bank material.

On the unlawful deduction from wages claim, the tribunal found that February 2020 salary had been earned but not paid, that the claimant worked until 20 March 2020 and was entitled to wages for that period after resigning with immediate effect, and that holiday pay accrued but untaken on termination was payable on a pro rata basis under the Working Time Regulations 1998. It calculated the gross sums due for those heads and treated the holiday pay as part of the wages claim rather than as a separate working time award.

On the breach of contract claim, the tribunal found that expenses totalling £8,483.82 had been properly incurred, approved, and not paid. It also held that the respondent's failure to pay salary and expenses was a repudiatory breach that entitled the claimant to accept termination and recover damages for the contractual notice period, bank and interest charges of £394.74, and half of increased mortgage interest of £1,405. It rejected the separate claim for charges incurred by Hood Property Limited because those losses belonged to a different legal entity.

The tribunal ordered payment of the sums awarded subject to the usual deductions for tax, national insurance, and any employee pension contributions where permitted, provided written notice was given and the sums were remitted to the appropriate authority. It reserved for 14 days the question of whether to impose a penalty under section 12A of the Employment Tribunals Act 1996, noting that the maximum potential penalty could be half of the total award of £36,314.53.