Claimant v Anchor Bookham Ltd
Outcome
Individual claims
The tribunal found the respondent breached the employment contract by failing to pay the claimant notice pay due on termination. The tribunal awarded damages calculated on gross pay to reflect Post Employment Notice Pay tax treatment.
The tribunal found the respondent made an unauthorised deduction from wages by failing to pay the claimant for holidays accrued but not taken on the date employment ended. The claimant was awarded £371.40 for unpaid holiday entitlement.
The tribunal found the claimant was unfairly dismissed. The respondent did not attend the hearing to defend the claim. The tribunal awarded both a basic award and compensatory award, with recoupment provisions applied.
The complaint of associative disability discrimination was not well-founded. The tribunal did not find sufficient evidence to support this claim and it was dismissed.
The complaint regarding statutory sick pay deductions was dismissed because the Employment Tribunal does not have jurisdiction to consider claims relating to statutory sick pay.
Facts
The claimant was employed by Anchor Bookham Ltd until 2 July 2024. The respondent failed to attend the tribunal hearing. The claimant brought claims for unfair dismissal, breach of contract (notice pay), holiday pay, associative disability discrimination, and statutory sick pay deductions. The claimant represented herself at the hearing.
Decision
The tribunal found in favour of the claimant on unfair dismissal, breach of contract, and holiday pay claims, awarding a total of £17,711. The associative disability discrimination claim failed on its merits, and the statutory sick pay claim was dismissed for lack of jurisdiction. Recoupment regulations were applied to the unfair dismissal award.
Practical note
When a respondent fails to attend a hearing, a claimant can still succeed on contractual and unfair dismissal claims, but discrimination claims require sufficient evidence to meet the legal tests even in the absence of a defence.
Award breakdown
Legal authorities cited
Statutes
Case details
- Case number
- 6011637/2024
- Decision date
- 17 October 2025
- Hearing type
- full merits
- Hearing days
- 1
- Classification
- contested
Respondent
- Sector
- other
- Represented
- No
Claimant representation
- Represented
- No