Hairdresser ordered to pay back employee

A Stamford hairdresser has been ordered to pay her former employee more than £5,000 in wages owing and compensation at an employment tribunal.

The hearings at Huntingdon Law Courts, which took place on four dates in January and April this year, heard that Petra Johnson, who owns Petra’s Hair and Beauty in Broad Street, made unauthorised deductions from Evie McDonald’s wages when she worked as a trainee at the salon and unfairly dismissed her.

The court heard Miss McDonald, who worked at the salon between 2009 and 2014, was wrongfully dismissed in breach of her contract and “there was a 50 per cent chance that the her employment would have terminated in any event, by way of a fair dismissal or a resignation”.

The results of the hearing were published last month on the government’s www.gov.uk website.

Ms Johnson was ordered to pay Miss McDonald £5,025.92 compensation, which included £2,555.79 for unpaid wages. She had also paid cash to Miss McDonald prior to the hearing, made up of £395.35 backpay, £270 for “wages for week in hand and final two days of employment” and £474.70 for an over-deduction of income tax and national insurance.

Ms Johnson told the Mercury this week that she is “happy with the judges’ findings”. She also pointed out that her business has undergone a refurbishment.