A former employee of a Dundee restaurant has been awarded over £8,000 in compensation after she was “unfairly dismissed” while on furlough.
Maria Reina Lopez raised an employment tribunal action after she was sacked from her job as a kitchen assistant at 172 at the Caird by Occasions Leisure Limited, the restaurant’s owner at the time.
Ms Reina Lopez claimed she was threatened with the sack if she did not work while on furlough by director of the company, Martin Tippet, which led to her dismissal in August 2020.
£8,200 won in compensation
Following an employment tribunal, Mr Tippet was ordered to pay Ms Reina Lopez £8,199.41 in compensation.
Ms Reina Lopez had worked at 172 at the Caird since 2017 and during that time she had been employed by three separate entities.
Occasions Leisure Limited took over management of 172 at the Caird on the Nethergate in June 2019.
It is understood the restaurant, which has been renamed The Caird, is now under new management.
The tribunal states that Ms Lopez had been placed on furlough in March 2020.
The written ruling said: “In that time, the respondent told the claimant that in order to be paid and notwithstanding the fact that she was furloughed, she required to return to work.”
The company director did not participate in the tribunal, which heard Ms Reina Lopez claim she was threatened over text message by Mr Tippet that if she did not return to work, she would be fired without pay.
The Coronavirus Job Retention Scheme was put in place by the UK Government in 2020 to ensure as many workers as possible were supported to stay at home to help reduce the spread of Coronavirus.
The rules of the scheme, better known as furlough, stated that in order to receive government funding, staff should not continue working for their employer.
Staff made to work during lockdown
During the first lockdown, Mr Tippett’s staff worked in a takeaway business that operated from the restaurant’s kitchen.
Around August 22 2020, Ms Reina Lopez was sacked from 172 at the Caird by Mr Tippet over email with “no prior notice”.
Ms Reina Lopez claimed Mr Tippet had “failed to provide a justifiable reason for the claimant’s dismissal.”
The tribunal also states that at no time during Ms Reina Lopez’s employment with Occasions Leisure Limited was she issued a statement of terms and conditions of employment.
Director claiming 80% of wages from taxpayer
In 2020, the Courier revealed Mr Tippet had told staff unless they worked while on furlough during lockdown, they would not be paid.
The restaurant owner had asked staff to sign a contract committing them to “suitable alternative work” while he was claiming 80% of their wages from the taxpayer.
He had also sent a message to a staff social media group that said: “Now that you’re receiving 80% of your average wage, we would like you to work 80% or less of your weekly hours to make sure we have a business to reopen.”
At the time, Mr Tippet confirmed he had sent the message to the group and that staff on furlough had worked in his takeaway business during lockdown.
The company director said he was facing bankruptcy due to the effect of lockdown on his business and when drawing up the new contracts he had taken advice from “HR professionals”.
Mr Tippet could not be reached for a comment on the recent employment tribunal.
