ABERDEEN, SCOTLAND / RankWire.AI / – A Scottish employment tribunal has mandated PizzaExpress to pay former employee Raymond Joseph £5,469.04 after a colleague repeatedly targeted his American nationality during a workplace dispute. The colleague referred to Joseph as an American and a “Yank,” while also telling him to return to his country. Employment Judge Melanie Sangster determined that this conduct amounted to racial harassment. The ruling was based on the entire exchange, its repeated nature, and the context within a bustling Aberdeen restaurant.
Joseph began working at the PizzaExpress Union Square location in September 2024, typically clocking 20 to 22 hours weekly. On April 8, 2025, he and waiter Michael Tortolano were the only staff serving customers. The restaurant was crowded, and both staff members struggled to manage the workload. Tortolano told Joseph that nobody liked him, called him an American and a “Yank,” and urged him to leave the country. Joseph responded with insults, including “bald loser.” Tortolano repeated these remarks later during the shift.
These comments were made publicly, in front of customers and others present. Joseph testified to the tribunal that he felt hurt and humiliated. He reported the incident to a manager that same day and continued working. PizzaExpress later admitted that Tortolano made these remarks, recognizing them as racial harassment. The tribunal upheld this claim under the Equality Act 2010, which includes nationality within the scope of race. The decision considered the repeated remarks, the instruction to leave the country, and the public workplace environment.
Tribunal awards injury to feelings compensation
Joseph was awarded £5,000 for injury to feelings. This amount falls within the middle of the lower Vento band, the scale used to determine discrimination damages. An additional £469.04 in interest was added, calculated at 8% over 428 days from the April 2025 incident. The tribunal found no financial loss resulting from the harassment. Joseph did not take time off nor seek medical treatment, but he remained distressed and repeatedly questioned why managers had not initiated an investigation.
PizzaExpress started its investigation into the incident on May 20, six weeks after it occurred. The tribunal regarded this delay as unreasonable but found no connection between it and Joseph’s protected disclosures or actions. During a disciplinary hearing, Tortolano later admitted to the allegations. PizzaExpress determined that his conduct amounted to gross misconduct and issued him a final written warning after considering his admission, remorse, and clean employment record. Separately, the company investigated three allegations against Joseph. A manager concluded these were substantiated and dismissed him summarily on June 20, 2025.
Dismissal and other claims rejected
Joseph also claimed victimisation, whistleblowing detriments, and automatic unfair dismissal. The tribunal dismissed all these claims. PizzaExpress had acknowledged that 13 of his 24 claimed disclosures qualified as protected disclosures before the final hearing. However, the tribunal found no causal link between those disclosures and the decisions challenged. It concluded that Joseph’s dismissal was solely due to proven misconduct. The tribunal also determined that his protected acts did not influence the dismissal decision.
The misconduct included his behavior during the argument, a separate inappropriate comment, and unauthorized access to confidential company information. A PizzaExpress manager also found that Joseph had sent company materials to his personal email account. Joseph denied these allegations and did not appeal the dismissal. The Aberdeen tribunal heard the case over seven days in April and May 2026. The judgment was issued to the parties on June 10. The race harassment claim remained Joseph’s only successful complaint.