FULL RECOMMENDATION
INDUSTRIAL RELATIONS ACTS, 1946 TO 1990 SECTION 26(1), INDUSTRIAL RELATIONS ACT, 1990 PARTIES : DEBENHAM'S TALLAGHT (REPRESENTED BY IRISH BUSINESS AND EMPLOYERS' CONFEDERATION) - AND - MANDATE DIVISION : Chairman: Ms Jenkinson Employer Member: Ms Doyle Worker Member: Mr Shanahan |
1. Hearing Arising From LCR:20188
BACKGROUND:
2. The claim before the Labour Court was the subject of a hearing which took place on the 26th October 2011.The Court issued its Recommendation (LCR20188) and recommended that "both parties should enter into meaningful discussions with a view to reaching an agreement on Sunday working which will reflect the current business realities facing the Company". The Court recommended that these discussions should be completed by no later than 16th November 2011. Following these discussions while some progress was made the parties failed to resolve the Sunday working issue and both parties referred the matter back to the Court for a definitive Recommendation. The resumed hearing was held on 8th May 2012.
UNION'S ARGUMENTS:
3. 1.The Union sought that Sunday working be made available to four Workers on a one-week-in-four basis.
2.The Sunday premium sought was to be double time in accordance with the practice prior to the transfer of undertakings.
3. The Union submitted that its proposal limited the number of Sundays to the four named workers and imposed an obligation on them to make themselves available for one in four Sundays.
COMPANY'S ARGUMENTS:
4. 1.The Company proposed that the workers who had the practice of regular and rostered Sunday working would work no less than one in five Sundays.
2.A Sunday premium of time-and-a-half was all that the Company could offer in the current economic conditions it could not afford to continue to pay these nominated workers double-time.
- 3.The Company argued that its proposal would bring equitable treatment to the allocation for Sales Assistants to work on the Sunday roster.
RECOMMENDATION:
The matter before the Court follows Labour Court Recommendation LCR20188 where the Court recommended that the parties should enter into meaningful discussions on Sunday working which should reflect the business realities facing the Company. Both sides reported back on those discussions and the Court hereby issues a definitive Recommendation on the outstanding matters.
Having carefully considered the position of both sides the Court recommends that the four named employees in question should be rostered for one in every five Sundays on a rotational basis and paid at the rate of double time for a twelve month period. After the twelve months, which will commence on the first Sunday from implementation of this Recommendation, the overtime rate will decrease for all four named employees concerned to time plus a half.
The Court so recommends.
Signed on behalf of the Labour Court
Caroline Jenkinson
10th May, 2012______________________
Deputy Chairman
NOTE
Enquiries concerning this Recommendation should be addressed to Jonathan McCabe, Court Secretary.