Bloke wins 22,000 after unfair dismissal for alleged vaping in toilets

A Nestle employee who worked for 11 years was awarded over 22,000 after a tribunal ruled his dismissal for allegedly vaping in company toilets was unfair and disproportionate

Adam Cailler Senior reporter and MSN lead and Taite Johnson

11:54, 20 Mar 2026Updated 11:54, 20 Mar 2026

[Nestle factory in Tutbury, where Mr Billings allegedly vaped in the bathroom and caused production be halted]

Nestle factory in Tutbury, where Mr Billings allegedly vaped in the bathroom and caused production be halted

A former Nestle employee has been awarded more than 22,000 after being dismissed for allegedly vaping in the company's lavatories. Luke Billings, who had worked for the Swiss food giant for 11 years, was terminated for supposed gross misconduct in October 2023.

Mr Billings faced accusations of vaping in the staff toilets, which caused the fire alarm at the production facility to activate, leading to staff evacuation and production being suspended. This resulted in disruption and lost output.

An internal probe into what triggered the fire alarm was conducted alongside an examination of CCTV footage that reportedly identified the cause as someone vaping in one of the lavatories. The investigation determined that Mr Billings had been vaping in the disabled toilets, which set off the alarm.

He refuted this claim, insisting that he did not vape so it could not have been him. Nevertheless, he subsequently acknowledged that he did occasionally vape but only at weekends and only at home. For the biggest stories in Wales first sign up to our daily newsletter here

After a disciplinary hearing, Mr Nasr the disciplinary officer, concluded that Mr Billings was responsible for triggering the alarm and that he was being dishonest, therefore Mr Nasr determined it was appropriate to dismiss him, reports Wales Online.

Prior to the incident on October 11, 2023, Mr Billings had been absent from work due to illness from June 2022 to August 2023 because of depression. Around the same time as the incident, another staff member was discovered to have committed a health and safety breach but wasn't sacked.

Mr Billings believed he was treated differently due to his depression, however the tribunal in Nottingham determined that the reason for the contrasting treatment was that the other worker admitted wrongdoing and said sorry.

The tribunal concluded that the internal probe was conducted properly, including interviewing all relevant witnesses and thoroughly examining the CCTV footage.

Nevertheless, the decision to sack Mr Billings was unfair. The dismissal was ruled unfair as Mr Nasr stated that had Mr Billings confessed to vaping in the toilets and then apologised, he wouldn't have been dismissed, meaning health and safety concerns and lost productivity weren't the main factors.

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Refusing to apologise or accept blame doesn't constitute misconduct. The tribunal also determined that as it was a single isolated incident in an otherwise spotless career, the dismissal was excessive.

Mr Billings was awarded 22,216.72 in compensation for the wrongful dismissal.

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