Waitress is sacked by exclusive Oxbridge club for trying to take a piece of lasagne home because she had no time to eat it during her lunch break

 A WAITRESS at a posh London club has been sacked after bosses found she had tried to take a piece of lasagne wrapped in tin foil home after being too busy on her lunch break to eat it.

Silvia Mecati, who has worked at the Oxford and Cambridge Club in Pall Mall for three years, was accused of “stealing” after having her handbag searched on June 27.

The 43-year-old, who was on a zero-hour contract at the exclusive club, is appealing against the decision.

Miss Mecati, who is from Italy and has lived in Britain for the last four years, told the Daily Mail: “At lunch I had taken a piece of lasagne but I didn’t have time to eat it so I left it on a plate.

“Near the end of my second shift I wrapped it in tin foil and put it in the fridge as I didn’t want to throw it away.

“But as I was leaving the night manager asked to check my bag. They had never checked my bag in three years.

“I told him, ‘I have my lunch with me because I didn’t have time to eat it and wanted to take it home’.

“He replied ‘Did you have written or verbal permission from the chef or a manger to take your lunch home?’ I answered no.”

At the end of her shift the following day she was suspended and escorted from the club, which is a regular haunt for Stephen Fry and was a favourite spot of Clement Attlee.

Later she received a letter from bosses.

It read: “Your actions can be considered to be theft in circumstances where you do not have permission to take Club food from the premises, and therefore a breach of your contract of employment.”

On July 6 she was formally sacked at a disciplinary hearing.

She received another letter that day which read: “The Club believes it is left with no alternative other than to summarily dismiss you from its employment on the ground of gross misconduct.

“The gravity of your misconduct is such that the club believes the trust and confidence placed in you as its employee has been completely undermined.”

The club told her that she had breached rule 2.8 of the employee handbook.

The rule states: “The removal of any item of Club property from the Club house without permission being granted from a Departmental Manager or the Duty Manager will be considered to be theft and therefore Gross Misconduct.”

Miss Mecati added: “I have never been in trouble or been disciplined before. They would’ve thrown the food away anyway.”