Claimant v Mrs N Brown T/a Zeste Beauty: S/4104592/2017 — 2017

The claimant, Miss Rebecca Williams, was employed by the respondent, Mrs Nicola Brown t/a Zeste Beauty. Her employment ended on 26 April 2017, and the wage payment due on 25 May 2017 included basic pay, holiday and commission. No payment was made on that date. A wage slip later issued on 16 June 2017 recorded a gross amount of £386.30, with deductions of £2.40 for PAYE tax and £440.00 for training costs. The tribunal found that the wage slip accurately set out the gross amount due and the stated deductions.

The issue before this hearing was limitation, not the substantive lawfulness of the deductions. The tribunal identified the relevant statutory time limit under section 23(2)(a) of the Employment Rights Act 1996 and held that, absent any extension, the claim would have been out of time because it was not lodged within three months of 25 May 2017.

The tribunal accepted, however, that ACAS conciliation altered the position. The claimant contacted ACAS on 8 August 2017, an ACAS conciliation certificate was issued on 8 September 2017, and the tribunal held that the conciliation period extended the time limit by one month from the date of the certificate. On that basis, the extended deadline expired on 8 October 2017.

The claim was lodged on 17 September 2017, so the tribunal held that it was not time-barred and had jurisdiction to hear it. The sole issue left for the substantive hearing was whether the deductions shown on the 25 May 2017 wage slip were lawful.