Marcelo Lagos was dismissed by his employer Number 1 Bar, London Bridge, in 2015 and told the kitchen was closing.
But an employment tribunal, sitting in Croydon, south London, found that the bar’s kitchen did not in fact close and food continued to be served after Lagos’s dismissal.
The tribunal heard that Lagos was actually sacked for raising concerns about the site’s salamander grill and deep-fat fryer after suffering a burn while working.
'Shocking case'
Jim McDermott, southern regional organiser of trade union GMB, said: “This is a shocking case where the employer has failed on so many different levels to abide by well-established laws that regulate the workplace relationship.
“Health and safety in the workplace is a fundamental right that GMB pursues on behalf of all workers and GMB will always seek to support members who are victimised for health and safety reasons.”
Public interest
Lagos’s disclosures were firmly in the public interest, because “anyone who came into that kitchen was likely to be endangered”, the tribunal found.
It also stated Lagos had suffered race discrimination, that the bar had failed to pay him the correct holiday and notice pay, and had not provided him with a statement of employment particulars, which is mandatory for employers to provide within two months of hiring a member of staff.
Number 1 Bar plans to appeal the case, The Morning Advertiser (MA) understands. A spokesman declined to comment at this time.