Estate Manager Awarded £392k for 827 Accrued Unpaid Holiday Days

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A real estate manager has been awarded nearly £400,000 by an employment tribunal after accumulating an astonishing 827 unpaid holiday days over 25 years.

Mossadek 'Moss' Ageli, who worked for the Libyan-owned firm Sabtina Limited, was consistently unable to take his annual leave due to operational demands.

Instead, an arrangement was made for him to be compensated for these untaken days.

The Watford Employment Tribunal ruled Mr Ageli was owed £392,000 for the accrued holiday, dating back to 1998.

This sum is in addition to £105,000 compensation from a successful unfair dismissal claim.

Mr Ageli joined Sabtina Limited in 1987, initially as deputy managing director before becoming commercial manager, operating from offices in London and Milton Keynes.

Moss Ageli could have signed off his holiday payments himself, but chose not to (Getty Images/iStockphoto)

In the early years, between 1987 and 1989, he took no holiday as he and his PA were the only full-time staff, essential for the company's functioning.

Directors refused 200 of his holiday days between 1988 and 1996.

His annual holiday entitlement increased from 30 to 45 days in 1996. By 1998, recognising the ongoing difficulty in taking leave, Mr Ageli and the company formalised an agreement for him to be paid for his untaken holiday.

He told the tribunal: “When it almost became the norm that holidays were difficult to have, I wrote to the non-resident managing director of [Sabtina], who was also the managing director of the parent company in Libya.

"I requested that, as and when required, I receive payment in lieu of unutilised holidays because of the circumstances of the company. The managing director agreed and signed the document.

"After years of doing this, it was agreed that there was no need to send any future paperwork for approval or denial and I simply kept a record of my holiday entitlement."

He described how he had got permission for the agreement with the company's owners and did not go behind their back to secure the payments even though it was in his power to do so.

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He said: “[Sabtina] does not have a pension scheme for the employees, and both myself and my PA were saving the holidays we could not have for when needed or at retirement.

"I was sole signatory for the company for a period exceeding 20 years and could have signed off payments for me and also my PA each year when we could not utilise the holidays.

"However, I did not do that even though it was within my remit to execute. I was relying on receiving these payments.”

In both 2001 and 2004 he was paid £15,000 in lieu of holiday, showing that the agreement was indeed in place, but it was agreed that he would not need to take the money each year as it would roll over.

This agreement was in place for decades, with Mr Ageli giving up holiday in return for extra pay, but in May 2022 the board of directors was replaced.

These new directors demanded documentation from the manager and began slowly removing duties from him until he had no role at the company despite being an employee there.

In March 2024 he received an email telling him he was being fired for gross misconduct, with the director claiming he had talked to Mr Ageli about his conduct before but it had not been improved.

Mr Ageli immediately replied saying that this simply was not true and that he had not even been allowed to appeal against the decision.

He said: “I am shocked to have received your email. I know nothing of the allegations you make against me and note that you have not given me any details of the same.

"I also note that you have not provided me with any right of appeal; if you had, I would appeal against my dismissal on the grounds that there is no justification whatsoever for your decision.”

He was also informed that he would not be paid for the 827 unpaid holiday days he had accrued since 1998 - which totalled £392,000.

The decision to dismiss him was upheld and Mr Ageli took Sabtina to an employment tribunal in Watford, where Employment Judge George Alliott agreed he had been mistreated by having his holiday pay withheld.

The tribunal ordered the company to pay the full amount of holiday pay owed as well as a total compensation from unfair dismissal for £91,490 and a basic award of £14,070.

The judge said: "I find that it was agreed between [Mr Ageli] and [Sabtina] that, with effect from the start of his employment, any unused holiday would be recorded and any unused entitlement would roll forward each year.

"I find that it was agreed between [Mr Ageli] and [Sabtina] that he would be paid for his holiday as and when needed or at the end of his employment.

" I find that [Sabtina] did not have a genuine belief that [Mr Ageli] had committed gross misconduct.

"I find that [Sabtina] did not conduct a reasonable investigation and did not have reasonable grounds to conclude that [Mr Ageli] had committed gross misconduct.

"I find this because [Sabtina] was unwilling or unable to provide [Mr Ageli] with reasons for his dismissal shortly after he, in effect, asked for them.

"I find that [Mr Ageli's] dismissal was clearly procedurally unfair in that he was not notified of the charges against him, was not notified of the evidence against him, was not given an opportunity to represent himself at a disciplinary hearing and was not afforded an appeal."

Sabtina Ltd is a wholly owned subsidiary of the Libyan Foreign Investment Company (LAFICO) which in turn is a subsidiary of the Libyan Investment Authority.