Claimant v Sainsbury's Supermarkets Ltd
Outcome
Individual claims
This preliminary hearing determined only procedural issues under rules 6 and 9 concerning whether claim forms were properly presented. The substantive equal pay claims were not adjudicated. The tribunal decided all irregularities should be waived and no claims struck out, allowing the equal pay claims to proceed.
Facts
Over 2,000 claimants, mostly women working in various roles in Sainsbury's supermarkets, brought equal pay claims comparing themselves to male distribution centre workers. The respondents argued that many claim forms breached rule 9 of the 2013 ET Rules by wrongly including multiple claimants whose claims were not based on the same set of facts, and sought to have the irregular claims struck out. The procedural dispute had already been to the EAT and Court of Appeal. This preliminary hearing dealt with 121 claimants in 22 claim forms remitted by the Court of Appeal.
Decision
Employment Judge Camp held that the disputed claim forms were indeed presented in breach of rule 9 and were irregular, but that it would be contrary to the overriding objective to strike them out. All irregularities were waived. The breaches were not deliberate, a fair trial remained possible, and the balance of prejudice favoured the claimants. The respondents' costs application was also refused.
Practical note
Even where multiple equal pay claims are irregularly presented in breach of rule 9, tribunals retain discretion under rule 6 to waive irregularities where breaches are inadvertent, no significant prejudice results, and striking out would be disproportionate and contrary to the overriding objective.
Legal authorities cited
Statutes
Case details
- Case number
- 1302374/2015
- Decision date
- 28 February 2025
- Hearing type
- preliminary
- Hearing days
- 2
- Classification
- contested
Respondent
- Sector
- retail
- Represented
- Yes
- Rep type
- barrister
Employment details
- Role
- Customer Service Assistants, General Assistants, Team Leaders (various departments)
Claimant representation
- Represented
- Yes
- Rep type
- barrister