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Glasgow Live
Glasgow Live
National
Holly Lennon

Merchant City Tribeca workers in dispute with boss given 'partial payment' of 'thousands owed'

Workers at Merchant City diner Tribeca say only some of them have received wages they believe they are owed after taking their dispute with their employer public.

We reported how a number of workers claimed that franchise owner Duncan Werry had been deducting 20% of their pay for several months despite them not being registered with HMRC.

They launched collective action with Better Than Zero calling for the 'massive backlog of missing wages' to be repaid and for their former employer to address all outstanding issues in the business.

The workers have now said that Werry has given some of the group 'partial payments' but not 'everything they're owed'.

Jon Heggie from Better Than Zero has accused the franchisee of refusing to communicate with the workers collectively and has failed to explain where the money has come from.

He added: "Around noon on Monday several of the workers noticed that they'd been paid by Duncan Werry. The amount varied from person to person - some were paid around half, some around three quarters, and some not at all.

"All workers are still owed holiday pay from their time at Tribeca, with sick pay and notice pay also missing for some.

Read more: Glasgow Tribeca staff in dispute with boss at Merchant City branch over 'backlog of missing wages'

"Mr Werry is refusing to engage with the workers collectively to explain how anything has been calculated, and has not responded to an email sent by the workers detailing their issues and asking for a resolution.

"This will not work - the workers are standing together and making it clear that they won't back down until all of them have received everything they're owed, and until their Mr Werry agrees to arrange a meeting to discuss the way the business is run. We're asking him to stop hiding and come forward to discuss a meaningful resolution for all workers affected.

"Since we publicised these issues last week, we've also received a large number of messages and comments from other former workers from Tribeca Merchant City, detailing a long history of workplace issues. It's clear that something has to change here, and we're offering to work with him on this."

Franchise owner Duncan Werry said: "I am satisfied that all due payments have now been made, but if any particular staff member wishes to discuss their individual circumstances, I shall be happy to do so. As I said last week, all decisions I made in relation to payments were taken after seeking professional advice."

Tribeca Franchises Limited added: "It has been brought to our attention that there have been allegations made against Tribeca Merchant City.

"Although part of a franchise, each Tribeca unit is run independently in its daily operations, and the allegations are the subject of an ongoing investigation. It is important that any investigation follows due process.

"We do, however, take all employment matters within any franchise restaurant very seriously and do not condone any inappropriate or unacceptable employment practices."

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