Miss N Saidi v Authentic Kare Company Ltd and S A Toendepi: 3326378/2019
JUDGMENT
[1]The claim against the Second Respondent is dismissed, the First Respondent was the Claimant’s employer.[2]The Claimant has suffered unlawful deduction from wages in the total sum of £1,624.10REASONS
[1]This matter came before me for a Final Hearing to hear the Claimant’s complaints that she suffered unlawful deduction from her wages and was not paid annual leave in accordance with the requirements of the Working Time Regulations 1998.[2]At 2pm, when the matter came on for its Hearing, the Claimant was not present, but her Representative was. The Claimant was having technical difficulties logging into the CVP system.[3]The Respondent’s Representative, identified as “Andrew” was present. He could be heard but not seen. He was asked to turn on his video camera but failed to do so. In order to give the Respondent’s Representative time to rectify this problem and in order to give time for the Claimant to attend the Hearing, the matter was stood down for 15 minutes.[4]At 2:20pm the matter came back on. The Claimant was present, but no Representative of the Respondent appeared.[5]After giving a further few minutes for the Respondent to join the Hearing, without any further attendance from them, the matter proceeded in the Respondent’s absence.[6]The Claimant was employed by the Respondent from 13 February 2018 until 27 August 2019. She completed Acas Early Conciliation between 14 October 2019 and 11 November 2019, the latter date being the date upon which her Early Conciliation Certificate was issued and she presented her claim form to the Tribunal on 2 December 2019.[7]The Claimant was not paid for work done in July 2019. She worked on 9, 11, 12, 13, 16, 18 and 19 July 2019, a total of 56 hours.[8]She took prearranged holiday from 22 July to 4 August that year. She notified her employer of her desire to take holiday on earlier dates which was rejected. She then asked for holiday during the period 22 July 2019 to 4 August 2019 and the Respondent did not reply.[9]The Claimant was unwell at the end of her period of holiday and submitted self-certification notes and sick notes to the Respondent. She was not paid statutory sick pay for a period of three weeks.[10]By 27 August 2019, the Claimant had still not received monies, notwithstanding her requests to be paid, as a result of which she tendered her resignation.[11]The failure to pay the Claimant for work done (her pay date was 9 August 2019) was a fundamental breach of the Claimant’s Contract of Employment. In those circumstances the Claimant was entitled to resign in the face of the Respondent’s breach and her resignation amounted to a dismissal by the Respondent.[12]The Claimant was entitled to one week’s notice under her Contract of Employment, having been continuously employed for more than one year.[13]The Claimant was employed on the National Minimum Wage and the prevailing rate at the time of these matters was £8.21 per hour.[14]The Claimant worked an average of 37.69 hours per week, although her contractual employment was for 32 hours per week.[15]The Claimant is therefore due the following sums:15.1 £459.76 (56 hours of work between 9 and 19 July 2019 at £8.21 per hour;15.2 £618.87 for unpaid holiday pay (two weeks at the average weekly hours of 37.69 hours at the rate of £8.21 per hour);15.3 £282.75 being three weeks unpaid statutory sick pay at the rate of £94.25 per week; and15.4 £262.72 being one week’s notice at the contractual entitlement of 32 hours.[16]The total sum due to the Claimant is therefore £1,624.10 8 April 2021