A casual worker is not an employee

A sessional worker at a care centre has lost his claim for unfair dismissal.

Jason McCafferty worked at the centre for about 18 months before it ended the working relationship, but the EAT in Scotland held that - although he had worked for 48 of the 52 weeks preceding his dismissal - he was not an employee.

The key factors in the EAT's decision were that McCafferty was not obliged to accept the work that he was offered, and the hours were not guaranteed. He had the option to refuse to work for whatever reason, and exercised this option when he told the centre that he would be unavailable to work on certain dates as he would be on holiday.

McCafferty v Paisley Christian Social Action Centre EATS/0106/03