Miss E Taylor v Freightport Logistics Limited — 2025

Miss E Taylor resigned on 23 April 2024 and her employment ended on 24 May 2024. She claimed unpaid wages for 1-9 May 2024 and statutory sick pay for 10-24 May 2024. The Respondent relied on a contract and handbook term allowing deductions for losses caused by an employee's carelessness or neglect, and on a sickness-reporting procedure requiring absence to be reported by telephone and, where absence exceeded seven days, medical certificates.

The tribunal accepted that the Claimant did not comply with the sickness-reporting procedure. She reported absence by WhatsApp rather than by telephone and did not contact another manager when Miss Murray was unavailable. On that basis, the tribunal held that the claimed SSP of £186.80 was not 'wages properly payable' under section 13(3) ERA 1996, so that part of the claim failed.

For the wages for 1-9 May 2024, the tribunal accepted that the Claimant worked the relevant days apart from an authorised early departure for a doctor's appointment on 9 May. It then considered whether the Respondent had proved that the contractual deduction clause applied because the Claimant had caused losses through carelessness or neglect. Although the Respondent relied on further losses said to total £21,760.01, the tribunal was not persuaded by the evidence that the Claimant had caused the specific losses it relied on in the way alleged. It therefore found the deduction from the 1-9 May wages was not authorised by a written term of the contract.

On remedy, the tribunal accepted the Claimant's monthly gross pay of £2,333.33 and daily gross rate of £107.69. It calculated gross wages due for 1-9 May 2024 at £753.83, deducted £39.71 net already paid and grossed that up to £49.64, and ordered the Respondent to pay £704.19 gross. The ACAS Code was not applied and no financial loss was claimed beyond the wage deduction complaint.