Ex-employees of former Glasgow music institution win employment tribunal following controversial closure

Staff at a now-defunct Glasgow music venue have won an employment tribunal nearly a year after the bars controversial closure back in July of 2023.

Today, April 16 2024, it was announced that former staff of the 13th note have won an employment tribunal against former owner, Jacqueline Fenessy, following the closure of the bar shortly after the workers announced their intentions to strike - which would have been the first strike action taken by bar workers in the UK in 20 years.

The former owner appointed liquidators, blaming the protracted dispute with members of the Unite Hospitality union over pay and conditions - as well as an “onslaught on social media and the wider press with false and misleading stories.”

The staff walked out at noon on Friday, July 14 with the strike ending Sunday July 16, coinciding with the Glasgow Fair weekend. Staff had signalled their intention to strike every weekend until 6 August before the owner closed the doors for good on the historic venue that had been operating for 21 years. The workers were calling for better wages, improvements to health and safety, and trade union recognition.

Writing on Twitter, representing union Unite Hospitality, wrote: “13th Note workers have WON their Employment Tribunal against the owner of the bar after the iconic venue was closed without notice. “The Judge held that the owner failed to consult with workers at all, awarding maximum compensation to all claimants. “The news comes as complete vindication for the workers who unionised in the face of shocking conditions which saw the venue closed down by environmental health. Closure came 3 days after workers took historic strike action in one of the most blatant examples of victimisation.

“So vindictive was the owner that the closure notice was issued via the media *before* workers were told that they’d lost their jobs. Unite officials and workers were due to meet with the owner and ACAS to negotiate but redundancy notices were issued hours before.

“With legal vindication, workers can now move onto taking back the venue, under worker’s control. We now need @GlasgowCC to release the lease for the venue so that we can ensure this iconic venue is kept alive with a workforce that is actually looked after.”

For the full context, including the owners comment at the time - take a look at our article covering the 13th note controversy as it happened.