IT WAS a case of good news/ bad news for an Anglesey man when he won first prize in a promotional competition.

Tony Jones lost his job as a result because his bosses claimed he should not have entered the draw.

Mr Jones had worked for 18 years as a counter assistant for the Llangefni-based Electrical Supplies (Anglesey) Ltd when, in March, 2017, he opened an e-mail from the Hoover/Candy group inviting members of the Sirius Buying Group, which offers discounts on goods from manufacturers and wholesalers, to enter a draw.

The prize was an outing to a GP race day at Bedford Autodrome to be held on July 14, 2017, and valued at £1,300 - £1,500.

Though Mr Jones did not go out of his way to keep the matter secret he didn’t mention anything to his bosses Brian and Trevor Jones about the competition or the fact that he had won .

When they confronted him he openly admitted what he had done but said he didn’t realize he should have told them.

He said he would not go to the event, but Brian Jones suspended him, arguing that the competition was open to Sirius members only and so it was tantamount to theft.

Tony Jones wrote a letter of apology but remained suspended on full pay while his bosses considered what further action to take.

With a new baby and a mortgage to pay he could not afford to be out of work and resigned before taking a job with a local builder’s merchant.

He took the company to employment tribunal and his claims of unfair and wrongful dismissal have been upheld by Employment Judge Stephen Williams following a hearing in Wrexham.

In his judgment the Judge said it was not right to leave the claimant “in limbo” for so long without contacting him or making further enquiries, when a simple phone call would have helped. That amounted to a breach of his contract of employment.

The company was ordered to pay a total of £5,856, but the Judge ruled that Mr Jones had contributed 50% to his dismissal by not telling his employer about the competition.

“It was for the respondent to decide whether to take part in the promotion and, if so, who should attend,” he said.

“Had the claimant turned his mind to the matter, as he should have done, he would have realized that he must consult his employer on the matter.”