A couple sacked by Waitrose after taking an unauthorised holiday in Bulgaria tried to sue the supermarket for race discrimination – claiming they were treated unfairly because they returned to work with “tanned skin.” But an employment tribunal rejected the bizarre claim, ruling that Peter Hedger and Katerina Dimitrova were dismissed for gross misconduct after failing to return from a refused leave request and misleading bosses about their whereabouts for nearly two months.
The Birmingham tribunal heard the couple had applied for leave starting September 2, 2023, which was denied. Despite this, they travelled to Ms Dimitrova’s home country of Bulgaria in late August and failed to return as expected. The pair kept in contact with colleagues between September 9 and October 29, but never disclosed they were abroad – only revealing the truth once they were back in the UK. Waitrose, owned by the John Lewis Partnership, later dismissed both employees, citing unauthorised absence and dishonesty as the grounds for termination.
The company argued the couple had initially claimed to be house-hunting in the UK, but this turned out to be false. A letter from the company’s appeal officer stated: “I suspect you went to Bulgaria during your authorised leave and decided to stay longer.”
The couple attempted to frame their dismissal as racially motivated, alleging they had been discriminated against because of their nationality and because they returned with “tanned skin.” But the tribunal rejected this outright, reported the MailOnline.
Employment Judge Naeema Choudry said: “The reason for dismissal was not due to the claimants being in Bulgaria, but because they were believed to be absent from work for no good reason… It is clear the claimants were dismissed because they were perceived to be on holiday when they were supposed to be at work – not because they had tanned skin.”
She added: “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.”
The panel confirmed the pair had breached company policy, with unauthorised absence clearly listed as gross misconduct in the John Lewis employee handbook.
Mr Hedger claimed he and his partner had extended their stay because they had no fixed place to live in the UK. He told the tribunal neither of them had worked since being sacked and were struggling financially, partly because they could only work the same shifts.
Both the race discrimination and harassment claims were thrown out, as well as their claims for unfair dismissal.
However, Ms Dimitrova’s claim relating to the right to be accompanied at disciplinary and appeal hearings will proceed to a separate hearing at a later date.