A former sales boss who was unfairly sacked after his employer discovered he had been working remotely from Egypt has been awarded more than £60,000 in compensation. Tanveer Shah, who lives in the Vale of Glamorgan, was employed by Stoke-based food delivery website Foodhub.
Mr Shah joined Foodhub as a field sales executive in 2018 and rose rapidly through the ranks to become UK field sales manager. In August 2022, chief executive Ardian Mula noticed that Mr Shah's expenses were 'far lower' than those of his team, despite his national role. Mr Mula confronted Mr Shah, accusing him of 'stealing money from the company' and dismissed him on the spot.
Mr Shah later explained that he had been in Egypt on holiday when he contracted Covid-19 and was unable to fly back to the UK, so he worked remotely for a period. He could not specify exactly how long he had been in Egypt, which the tribunal judge described as a 'surprising gap' in his memory.
An employment tribunal found that the subsequent appeal process was a sham, orchestrated by senior HR manager James Page to achieve a predetermined outcome of dismissal. The tribunal concluded that Foodhub had unfairly dismissed Mr Shah, noting that the investigation failed to fully examine fuel expense records.
Judge David Maxwell awarded Mr Shah £61,419 in compensation, taking into account the deterioration of his mental health due to prolonged unemployment and financial difficulties following his sacking. Foodhub, founded in 2008, operates in the UK, US, Australia and New Zealand.
