Lose-lose ending to year-long telco employment row

Tuesday 17 October 2023

A year-long legal dispute between a telecoms company and a former employee has ended without any money changing hands.

Michael Ward took a case against Homenet to the Jersey Employment and Discrimination Tribunal in September 2022, complaining that for more than half of his two-year employment with the company he had not been provided with a contract, and also that he was owed holiday pay at the time of resigning from his position.

A written judgment issued by the Tribunal this month outlines that Homenet accepted the delay in signing Mr Ward’s contract, which it stated was caused by negotiations regarding holiday entitlement and commission. The company also made a counter-claim in relation to a loan to its former employee that he had yet to repay.

The judgment outlines a series of other claims made by Mr Ward, which were eventually dismissed after he was found not to have provided evidence ahead of a deadline imposed by the tribunal.

Mr Ward was found to be liable to repay the sum of £1,549 for the loan.

It was also agreed between the parties that Mr Ward should receive five days’ holiday pay equivalent to a gross sum of £1,300.

In relation to the claim regarding the employment contract, the judgment states that while compensation should be due, the circumstances around the delay meant that this should be a nominal figure.

The tribunal adjudged that a figure of £249, representing just less than a day’s pay, was a suitable sum for Homenet to compensate Mr Ward for the contract issue, leaving the two parties owing each other £1,549. This meant that, in effect, no money would change hands.