»»Unpaid overtime row chef accused of inappropriate conduct by trendy restaurant firm after he goes public »»Union slams Six by Nico and says many other angry workers have come forward over unfair treatment
TRENDY restaurant Six by Nico has been slammed after it came out fighting against a cook who claimed to be sacked after demanding overtime pay.
The Record revealed head chef aaron Hammond was sacked for allegedly daring to ask for 229 hours of overtime pay.
Six By Nico later released a statement claiming numerous instances of “inappropriate conduct” – claims that it did not air when the Record ran the original story last week.
But since our article, the Unite union, which is backing aaron’s bid for a tribunal, claims several other staff have come forward to back his claims about working long hours with no breaks.
aaron, who worked at the restaurant chain’s Home X operation, which sends posh meals in boxes to customers for £60, claims that any appraisals from the company prior to him asking for more than 200 hours of overtime pay had been glowing.
In one text, sent on
January 29, the chain’s chief operating officer Rachael Rafferty said: “I just wanted to say I was really impressed with you in the meeting today and can see you’re a big driving force behind making all these changes and improvements in the kitchen, and it was great to see you vocalise your opinion on everything as I don’t believe you’ve had an opportunity to do so before.
“We’re all really pleased to see you coming out of your shell and get the notice you clearly deserve.”
Unite is claiming aaron suffered “automatic unfair dismissal and breach of contract”.
Aaron said: “The company has made allegations about my conduct but produced zero detail and no evidence.
“I am told by the union that at least a dozen past and present workers have also given details of similar problems at Six By Nico, so I look forward to getting my day in the tribunal.”
Unite organiser Bryan Simpson said: “We’ve been contacted by Six by Nico workers about everything from underpayment of wages to 16-hour shifts without a break.
“These horrendous reports show that there are systemic issues (not just in Scotland) with the way in which Six by Nico are treating their workers, morally and legally.”
On thestaffcanteen.com website, Six By Nico said of aaron: “He was dismissed last month following repeated instances of inappropriate conduct.”
a spokesman for the firm, set up by chef Nico Simeone, said yesterday that it had nothing to add to the earlier comments.