Pay-out for Accrington lorry driver in employment claim
December 14 2009
A LONG-distance lorry driver who was sacked following an alleged row with a customer has been awarded compensation after an employment tribunal ruled he was unfairly dismissed.
Paul Wyer, 46, of Spencer Street, Accrington, was sacked by haulage firm, J Hayward & Sons of Walsall Ltd, after one of its main customers made a complaint following the alleged quarrel at a factory in Hull.
Mr Wyer was left out of work for seven weeks after the dismissal and, because he had been sacked, was unable to claim unemployment benefits.
J Hayward and Sons, which also has an office in Accrington, said it was forced to sack Mr Wyer because the customer in question, MacAndrews and Company Ltd, was one of its biggest customers and had asked that Mr Wyer not used for future deliveries at the site.
However, an employment tribunal in Manchester ruled that Mr Wyer was automatically unfairly dismissed because his employer had failed to follow the correct disciplinary procedures, including a failure to notify Mr Wyer of his right to appeal against the decision.
Though the tribunal accepted the reason for the dismissal was third party pressure, it ruled that the dismissal was “substantively unfair” because the company did not consider whether Mr Wyer could be used for work on other contracts.
Mr Wyer, who has been a lorry driver since leaving school, has now found employment with a another transport firm based in Carnforth, but says he and his family have suffered as a result of the dismissal in February 2009.
He said: “It’s been a miserable time - I was out of work for nearly two months and was unable to claim benefits. To look after my partner and children I had to use all our savings, which I’d worked really hard to build up. The loss of income also meant we were unable to take our kids on holiday this year, so they have spent the whole summer in Accrington.
“It’s not just about the money though, the initial incident was not properly investigated and I wasn’t given the right to appeal. They could have found work for me on another contract, but I was given the boot.”
Sadiq Vohra, a solicitor with Preston-based MWR Solicitors, and who represented My Wyer, said: “In this case the law on employee disciplinary procedures was not followed properly. It was not made clear to my client that this was a disciplinary hearing that might result in him being dismissed, and the dismissal letter did not notify my client of his right to appeal.
“As well as highlighting to firms that they must work within the law, I hope this case also reminds employees that they have certain rights and that they should not be discouraged from seeking legal advice if they think they have been dismissed unfairly.”
The tribunal said it was satisfied that J Hayward and Son Ltd could not rely on misconduct by Mr Wyer as a reason for the dismissal because the company had blamed third party pressure as the real reason.
At the tribunal, J Hayward and Sons Ltd was ordered to pay Mr Wyer a significant compensatory award.
