A distillery worker has won more than £11,000 after being sacked for urinating on a barrel.
Dad-of-two Kerry Wilson was fired after a puddle of urine was found next to casks at William Grant and Sons – makers of the Glenfiddich brand.
The 51-year-old had been spotted by a colleague near the barrels shortly before the wet patch was discovered, reports the Daily Record.
A can of urine deodorant spray was also found at his workplace at the Girvan distillery in Ayrshire.
But when confronted, Mr Wilson claimed he was an ornithologist and said he had spotted a robin in the gap between the barrels.
Bosses sacked him from his £49,000-a-year job as a spirit supply operative.
He has now won a pay-out of £11,264.76, or 12 weeks’ notice, after a tribunal found the firm could not conclusively prove he was the culprit.
The tribunal in Glasgow was told Mr Wilson had been with the firm for 31 years by the time of the incident in 2019.
On November 20, managers were told “a pool of urine had been found on the floor around the area of a stow of empty casks,” the panel was told.
A probe was launched and a sample of the liquid was sent to a lab which concluded it was human urine.
Wilson’s colleague Gordon McNair reported seeing him in the area – not where he normally worked – and a urine deodoriser was found at his work station, the hearing was told.
When asked why he had been in the area, Mr Wilson, who denied urinating on the casks, said he had fancied a “change in scenery” after his lunch break.
Asked about the spray, Wilson said he thought it was a cleaning spray.
In December 2019 – following an appeal – he was fired for gross misconduct without notice pay.
He then sued William Grant for £70,000 for unfair and wrongful dismissal.
A spokeswoman for William Grant & Sons confirmed the firm would not comment on the ruling.
