British sailor lacked jurisdiction to bring Tribunal claims

The Claimant worked wholly outside the UK on a Singaporean-flagged vessel in international waters. It was considered that he was not protected by the Equality Act 2010 because, at the time of his dismissal, he was working wholly outside Great Britain on a vessel that was not registered in the UK. He was unable to rely on the case of Bleuse v MBT Transport Limited, which is authority for the view that domestic law must be interpreted in so far as possible to give effect to rights derived under EU law, because the act complained of took place outside the EU. Additionally his claims for unfair dismissal and breach of contract lacked jurisdiction because he did not meet the jurisdiction of requirement set out in the Employment Tribunal (Constitution and Rules of Procedure) Regulations 2004.

This legal update is provided for general information purposes only and should not be applied to specific circumstances without prior consultation with us.

For further details on any of the issues covered in this update please contact Gemma Ospedale, Partner in Employment on 020 7583 2222