Couple sue Waitrose after being sacked when returning from holiday with a tan
A couple who were sacked by Waitrose after returning from an unauthorised holiday, along with a tan, sued the supermarket for discrimination.
Peter Hedger and Katerina Dimitrova were given the boot by bosses as they travelled to Bulgaria without the permission of their employer after their request for annual leave was rejected.
The pair then claimed that Waitrose, which is owned by retail giant John Lewis, had discriminated against them because they had returned with 'tanned skin'.
But an employment tribunal dismissed this claim, instead finding that their employment was terminated as they had taken an unauthorised trip abroad and had extended their stay without permission.
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The tribunal, held virtually in Birmingham, heard that Hedger and Dimitrova had both worked at Waitrose and had submitted a holiday request which was denied.
"The (couple) put in a leave request for 2 September 2023 which was refused," the tribunal was told, according to the Daily Mail. "They then made contact with their branch on a number of occasions between 9 September 2023 and 28 October 2023.
"On none of these occasions did they mention that they were abroad and it was only after they returned to the UK that they disclosed that they had travelled to Bulgaria towards the end of August 2023."
Waitrose said that the workers were 'dismissed for gross misconduct, namely, unauthorised absence'.
However, Hedger and Dimitrova - who hails from Bulgaria - alleged that they had been unfairly targeted because of their 'tanned skin' which they returned with after their travels.
Waitrose said that an appeal officer concluded that the couple had 'not been open and honest with their branch about the reasons for absence' and didn't let their managers know 'at the soonest opportunity'.
The tribunal also heard that their superiors didn't even know they were out of the country.
"Unauthorised absence was listed as an example of gross misconduct (in John Lewis)'s handbook," the tribunal heard.
Reports claim that it appeared as though Hedger and Dimitrova had both alleged that they were house hunting in the UK, but were actually still in Bulgaria.
A letter on the outcome of their appeal stated: "I suspect you went to Bulgaria during your authorised leave and decided to stay longer."
But according to Hedger, he and his partner were only absent as they had no where to live.
"Neither he nor Ms Dimitrova had worked since their dismissal as it was difficult for them to get work on the same shift, their financial means were not good and they had no income," the tribunal was told.
Despite this, the tribunal sided with Waitrose and dismissed the pair's claim that they had been discriminated against because of their tan, as well as their allegations of unfair dismissal.
Employment Judge Naeema Choudry said: "The reason for dismissal was not due to the [couple] being in Bulgaria, but because they were believed to be absent from work for no good reason and not to be house-hunting in the UK because they were abroad at the relevant time, having stayed abroad after a period of authorised annual leave.
"As such, a claim based on Ms Dimitrova's Bulgarian nationality has no reasonable prospects of success and is struck out. I am also satisfied that the allegation relating to 'tanned skin' has no reasonable prospects of success and should be struck out.
"It is clear that the (couple) were dismissed because they were perceived to be on holiday when they were supposed to be at work and not because they had tanned skin."
Their claims for discrimination and harassment on the grounds of race were also rejected, as they had 'no reasonable prospect of success'.
Dimitrova's claim relating to the right to be accompanied at disciplinary and appeal hearings will be heard at a tribunal on a later date.
John Lewis declined to comment on the case.
Olivia Burke