Judge rules freelance teacher owed employee rights by drama school

A singing teacher hired by a performing arts school on a freelance basis has successfully argued that he was entitled to paid notice and holiday pay at a tribunal, which ruled his employment at the college meant he was both a worker and an employee.

The teacher was hired in January 2022 by MEPA College in Maidstone – which offers three-year courses to 16-21-year-olds in dance, music and the performing arts – to deliver half a day of teaching each week, later increasing to a full day.

In January 2023, he learned he had been dismissed for the upcoming term “due to a change in timetable and a tighter budget” and was not given any notice period or payment.

During the tribunal, the teacher claimed he was entitled to holiday pay for the duration of his employment and paid notice as an employee and a worker, while the college argued he was self-employed and was not entitled to either benefit.

The college, whose corporate identity is MEPA Academy Limited, treated all their teachers as self-employed, a fact mentioned during the claimant’s interview.

Under his working arrangements, the claimant did not receive holiday pay or sick pay, nor was he paid when pupils were preparing for performances.

He was registered as a self-employed sole trader, and he received gross pay – without tax deductions, never requesting to be put on the school’s payroll.

Despite considering the teacher’s tax status and the working relationship as significant factors against employment status, the judge noted that these arrangements were decided by the college, which required its teachers to submit invoices.

‘A myriad of factors’

In the ruling, Judge MJ Reed noted that determining employment status involved “a myriad of factors”, including mutuality of obligation, control, organisational integration and economic reality.

“It is… a fact-sensitive question, which is not easily reducible to a simple set of rules,” said the judge. “Rather, it requires consideration of all the relevant circumstances in order to weigh the relevant factors as a whole.”

Considering whether the college treated the claimant as an employee or worker, the judge noted that the teacher was “closely integrated” into the college’s operations as he taught students, which is its core function, was involved in meetings separate from his direct teaching duties and was provided with a college email address.

The tribunal heard that the college’s staff handbook included “restrictive covenants” that prevented teachers from being employed by any competitor of the college within one year of leaving and required them to maintain confidentiality over sensitive information.

Meanwhile, the job description set out several expectations, including that the teacher arrive 15 minutes before their class and produce detailed lesson plans at the beginning of half term.

‘A significant degree of control’

The judge said the college had “a significant degree of control” over the teacher’s work, noting he was required to attend set hours with no question of sending a substitute. They said the college could not have operated if the claimant had been able to choose whether to attend work.

“Stepping back from these individual factors to consider the situation as a whole, I am satisfied that the relationship between [the claimant] and the college was one of employment. Many of the most significant factors point strongly towards an employment relationship,” said the judge

They continued, “It follows from the conclusion that [the claimant] was an employee that he was also a worker.”

The claimant was found to be entitled to 5.6 weeks of holiday leave from MEPA Academy Limited, amounting to £723.9. He was also awarded £240 as damages for breach of contract in recognition that he was entitled to one week’s statutory notice.

The claimant had argued that because the college required one term’s notice from teachers, he expected it to be “reciprocal”, but the judge disagreed.

MEPA has been contacted for comment.