The 14 year old waitress was dismissed from her role as waitress after only completing 2 shifts by her employer.

Upon commencement of employment the claimant was asked to complete a new starter’s form which contained her date of birth as did the online application she completed prior to being successful for the role.

After completing her second trial shift, she was contacted by the owner of the company and advised he had enjoyed working with her and whilst she has done nothing wrong she was too young to continue working there due to health and safety reasons.

Under current UK legislation there is no reason why an employer cannot employ people as young as the age of 13 as long as they:

• Adhere to additional limitation of the working time directive for young workers
• Have enhanced Health and safety protect for young workers
• Adhere to any limitation of the local authority

At tribunal the employer argued:

• That they were not aware of her age prior to her commencing employment
• The role was “too severe, and too stressful, and that she was not able to cope with the severity of the job”
• Had not followed instruction when told to go home whilst she was waiting to be picked up by her mother

The tribunal dismissed these arguments, and concluded that the claimant had established that on first impressions age was a factor in the employers decision to end her employment, and that the employer had failed to follow a fair process. As a result she awarded her £2800 in compensation.

Had she been employed over longer period, there is no doubt that the award would have been significantly higher.

The tribunal stated “The employer in this case appears to have relied on advice from their accountant without fully investigating the legal options and without also following any procedure.”

With any employment issue it is always worth getting the right advice at the right time to prevent costly awards due to simple technical errors or a lack of awareness as ignorance is not a defence that can be used in law.