Tribunal Threat

[VokesNo9]

Hi

Need some advice

I am involved with a football club which has Charitable status due to the nature of its members. Just over a year ago we got someone in to assist with coaching, we needed this person twice a week 2hrs per session.
They issued us with a handwritten timesheet at the end of each month, and were paid cash from our treasurer. Not contract of employment was ever issued.

The pandemic has had an impact on us, like most charities, and we have had to dispense with this persons role with the club.

This person is now claiming unfair dismissal, 16 months holiday pay, and pay for hours they said they had done that wasnt on their timesheets....team planning etc.

We do not believe they were our employee, they just offered their services on a self employed basis.

Question is, do they have a case ?

[ULA]

It seems like the individual is seeking to claim they are an employee. So I need to establish some further facts:

1. Was the timesheet presented as an invoice? Did it include any wording along the lines of I am responsible for my own tax and national insurance payments?
2. If the person was unable to turn up to a session i.e. they were ill could they send a replacement to fulfil the services?
3. Were they excluded from internal club matters?
4. Did the person provide main items of equipment to carry out the coaching sessions?
5. Did you require them to attend team planning? Was this over an above the coaching session you actually required them for?

Just in terms of the unfair dismissal they are claiming, if the person were to be deemed an employee then since they have less than 2 years service, unless they can claim discrimination, they would not have accrued the right to make and unfair dismissal claim.

I presume at the moment they have not actually started a Tribunal claim with the club by way of Early Conciliation with ACAS?

[VokesNo9]

1. Was the timesheet presented as an invoice? Did it include any wording along the lines of I am responsible for my own tax and national insurance payments?
2. If the person was unable to turn up to a session i.e. they were ill could they send a replacement to fulfil the services?
3. Were they excluded from internal club matters?
4. Did the person provide main items of equipment to carry out the coaching sessions?
5. Did you require them to attend team planning? Was this over an above the coaching session you actually required them for?

Just in terms of the unfair dismissal they are claiming, if the person were to be deemed an employee then since they have less than 2 years service, unless they can claim discrimination, they would not have accrued the right to make and unfair dismissal claim.

I presume at the moment they have not actually started a Tribunal claim with the club by way of Early Conciliation with ACAS?

[VokesNo9]

1. Was the timesheet presented as an invoice? Did it include any wording along the lines of I am responsible for my own tax and national insurance payments?

No, nothing like that, just dates and hours in attendance

2. If the person was unable to turn up to a session i.e. they were ill could they send a replacement to fulfil the services?

No

3. Were they excluded from internal club matters?

They were asked to trustee meetings on occasions, after a few sessions they were made head coach...in that they passed on info onto other coaches and did some planning

4. Did the person provide main items of equipment to carry out the coaching sessions?

No, the club supplied these

5. Did you require them to attend team planning? Was this over an above the coaching session you actually required them for?

That didn't really take place, there was some dialogue
around that sort of thing

Just in terms of the unfair dismissal they are claiming, if the person were to be deemed an employee then since they have less than 2 years service, unless they can claim discrimination, they would not have accrued the right to make and unfair dismissal claim.

Thats the issue, we dont think hes an employee, he does.


I presume at the moment they have not actually started a Tribunal claim with the club by way of Early Conciliation with ACAS?

Thats correct

[ULA]

Thanks for the information.

I appreciate you do not think he is an employee but his view will be based on identifying legal arguments that he can use as to why he should be classified as an employee. This could be based on the fact that the service he provided was under the control of the club including hours of work, the fact it was he and he alone that provided the service, that he was asked to attend trustee meetings and that he did not provide equipment in order to carry out the service leads to the fact he will argue he was an employee even if no employment contract was in place.

What I would suggest you do at this stage is respond to him and robustly defend your view that there was never any intention that he should become an employee of the club and that he was paid against information submitted directly and that he was to be responsible for his own tax and national insurance contributions. Based on this he was not paid through the club payroll and if he regarded himself as an employee why has he not raised this as an issue at the start of the arrangement?

This may not be the end of him trying to pursue a claim but at this stage it is better to try and defend what you believed the arrangement was when you engaged with him.

[VokesNo9]

Many thanks for your kind replies...