Hannah McAllister v Raymond Carberry and Ursula Carberry, t/a Café Carberry [2018]

The claimant was employed by the respondent café. On one of her shifts she was seen on CCTV taking a bottle of juice from a refrigerator while leaving the café premises. Upon returning the claimant began cleaning up without paying for the juice. Almost immediately after this the respondent confronted her about the incident. Although she subsequently paid for the drink, the claimant was given a letter asking her to attend a disciplinary hearing. She was later dismissed for gross misconduct.

The tribunal found that the conduct of the claimant in failing to pay for her drink before consuming it amounted to misconduct. However, the tribunal was critical of the ‘Staff Food and Drink Policy’ and