ABERDEEN, SCOTLAND / RankWire.AI / – A Scottish employment tribunal has mandated PizzaExpress to pay former waiter Raymond Joseph £5,469.04 after a colleague persistently targeted his American nationality during a workplace dispute. The colleague referred to Joseph as an American and a “Yank,” and told him to return to his country. Employment Judge Melanie Sangster determined that the behavior amounted to racial harassment. The ruling considered the entire exchange, its repeated nature, and the context within a busy Aberdeen restaurant.
Joseph began working at the PizzaExpress Union Square restaurant in September 2024, typically covering 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 found it difficult to manage the workload. Tortolano told Joseph that no one liked him, called him an American and a “Yank,” and told him to leave the country. Joseph responded with insults, including “bald loser.” Tortolano repeated his remarks later during the shift.
These comments were made publicly, in front of customers. Joseph told 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 the remarks and that they constituted racial harassment. The tribunal confirmed that the conduct fell under the protections of the Equality Act 2010, which defines nationality as part of race. The ruling addressed the repeated remarks, the instruction to leave the country, and the public nature of the workplace environment.
Tribunal awards damages for emotional distress
The tribunal granted Joseph £5,000 for injury to feelings. This amount was set in the middle of the lower Vento band, the scale used for discrimination damages. An additional £469.04 was awarded as interest, 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 any time off or seek medical treatment, but he remained distressed and repeatedly questioned why managers had not launched an investigation.
PizzaExpress commenced its investigation into the incident on May 20, six weeks after it occurred. The tribunal considered this delay unreasonable but found it unrelated to Joseph’s protected disclosures or actions. Tortolano later admitted to the allegations during a disciplinary hearing. PizzaExpress deemed his conduct gross misconduct and issued a final written warning, considering his admission, remorse, and clean disciplinary record. Separately, the company investigated three allegations against Joseph. A manager found these to be substantiated and dismissed him on June 20, 2025.
Other employment-related claims dismissed
Joseph also claimed victimisation, detriments related to whistleblowing, and automatic unfair dismissal. The tribunal dismissed all these claims. PizzaExpress had acknowledged that 13 of his 24 alleged 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. Additionally, the tribunal determined that his protected acts did not influence the decision to dismiss him.
The misconduct included Joseph’s behavior during the argument, an unrelated inappropriate comment, and unauthorized access to confidential company information. A PizzaExpress manager also found that Joseph had sent company material to his personal email. 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 sent to the parties on June 10. The race harassment claim remained Joseph’s only successful complaint.