Act

Complaint/Dispute Reference No.

Date of Receipt

Complaint    seeking adjudication by the Workplace Relations Commission under Section 30    and 31 of the Maternity Protection Act 1994

CA-00001299-001

05/12/2015

I    commenced my employment with Dalata Hotel Group, in the Ballsbridge Hotel on    the 7th of April, 2014. My role was of a Night Auditor going on a project    which included the complete creation and development of night procedures for    the hotel. The selection of my candidate-ship for this role was over the    fact that I was a Night Auditor in the other hotel group and had precise    “know how” needed by the Ballsbridge hotel. The reason why I was hired on    the first place. My job was never of a receptionist.      In the end of May I have notified our Front of House Manager and our head of    HR department of my pregnancy. I was 8 weeks pregnant. Several health and    safety issues arose during my night shifts at the hotel, those were    addressed and dealt with, leaving me in my role approved by company doctor    till almost the end of October.      At the start of October, 2014 I was offered to take up a new role which was    based in our hotel’s accounts department. To my knowledge there was a major    back-log with the billing and the department needed someone for at least 3    months to resolve it. The role of Accounts Auditor/ Credit Control assisting    Accounts Payable Accountant, in the Accounts department was offered to me by    Front of House Manager. She said that this role could fit me perfectly since    I had career background related to accounts auditing and I was successful in    a role of Night Auditor. On the 14 of October, 2014 I have send e-mail to    our head of HR department asking about my start day in accounts (Attachment    1) with the reply that it was set for the 20th of October (Attachment 2).      My new contract, the amendment to existing Nigh Auditor's contract    (Attachment 3) stated that I will be reporting to the Front of House    Manager. My new duty/responsibility was to look after corporate and    residential bills on behalf of Front of House/reception, send them to    clients and make sure that all bills were paid promptly and within the    threshold dates. I was collecting bills from the Front of House/reception,    and was processing them for the Accounts Payable in the accounts department.    At first my duty was to look after the billing of one property, the    Ballsbridge hotel, however later I was asked to take on the bills from the    second property, the Clyde Court hotel. This was asked of me since I worked    efficient, and was able to resolve billing back-log fast. Even though it was    an extra, unofficial, responsibility I did not mind because for me it was an    opportunity to learn as much as possible about my new role. At the same time    I was also asked by Miss Bernadine Rooney to help at the reception desk    during busy hours, and did so during morning meetings, lunch breaks as an    additional work to my role of Accounts Auditor. Again, I did not mind    because I always strive to assist with whatever I could knowing how busy our    hotel was and did above mentioned extras to be of a help to my colleagues    and management. I have, later, asked to keep the duties of just Accounts    Auditor when I was going on my 8th month of pregnancy as rushing from    accounts office to reception desk was becoming difficult for me.      On numerous occasions I was hearing how pleased our Regional Financial    Controller, was with my job in accounts from the head of HR department. She    said that at first the idea was to offer me a role in accounts on a fixed    term basis (3 months), but seeing how much I was progressing in this role,    asked if I would be interested to come back to same role after maternity. I    said that I was honored to receive such an offer and that it would be better    for me to work day shifts in comparison to night shifts when my baby is    born. As soon as we had an agreement I was told that the role of Nigh    Auditor, which I had previously, will be released to a member of a night    team whom I was asked to train into my ex role while performing my duty in    accounts department. The job offer, which the hotel wanted to advertise as    Night Auditor was, to my knowledge, taken right away .and I was to come back    to my role as an Accounts Auditor after maternity. I have built a great    relations with my colleagues in accounts department and acknowledged them    that I will be coming back to the team on my return from maternity based on    what I was offered by head of HR, Mrs. Claire Oliver. They were genuinely    happy for me and welcomed me to the team with pleasure. The role of Accounts    Auditor (Maternity Cover) appeared on jobs.ie after I have commenced my    maternity, and I knew that the hotel was looking for a suitable candidate.    It was obviously my job they were advertising since I was the only pregnant    in the accounts department.      On the 7th of January, 2015 I have send an e-mail to our head of HR    department outlining my duties in accounts department. That was requested by    her since she needed to advertise the job of Accounts Auditor for maternity    cover and wanted to have complete list of tasks performed by me (Attachment    4). She said that this would help “my substitute” to carry on tasks in same    manner.      My pregnancy was progressing faster than planned and I had to leave my duty    by 1 week earlier. This was confirmed by my doctor. In my e-mail to our head of HR    department, which I send on the 11th    of January, 2015 (Attachment 5) I have asked her to sign my contract;    “Please let me know what will happen to my contract and if I need to sign    any paperwork in relation to my current position. “In our phone conversation    she re-assured me that we can do so on my return from maternity and that I    had to worry more about my last weeks of pregnancy than job.      The automated reply on my e-mails was stating that I am coming back to work    on the 15th of July, 2015 (Attachment 6). My role was in accounts department    and our clients were directed to my colleagues in accounts.      I was visiting the hotel several times during my maternity to check on the    success of the branch and, primarily, to keep in touch with my colleagues. I    would bring my baby daughter with me and was lucky to spend few minutes in    accounts, chatting with my colleagues. They were all waiting for my return    and I was pleased to hear that until my Front of House Manager mentioned me    coming back to the role of Night Auditor after maternity. Hearing this I    wanted to contact the head of HR Department right away. On the 9th of March,    2014 I have send an e-mail to our head of HR department in which I have    asked her if she did secure my position in accounts department; I actually    had a chance to talk to Bernadine there and it looks like she believes that    I am coming back to perform my night auditor's position after maternity. I    have told her that this was not the case; I believe you secured my position    in account department and released night auditor's position to Steven. There    was also an advert on www.jobs.ie for accounts assistant (e.g.maternity    cover). Can you just clarify for me that everything is as it was, or were    there changes? (Attachment 7). The reply came back same day stating that    there must have been a confusion and that     she was happy with me to come back to my role of Accounts Auditor; “I    think Bernadine was lead to believe that by Stefan – miscommunication. Bernadine    is happy for you to return to your role on days.” (Attachment 8). That    clarified everything; as agreed, I was going back to the role of Accounts    Auditor on days and not nights. Later I needed a work reference for my    landlord, in which she clearly specified my role as Accounts Auditor    (Attachment 9). This was dated, the 7th of April, 2015.      Closer to the end of the summer I was receiving disturbing news that our    both hotels, the Ballsbridge hotel and the Clyde Court hotel, were going on    sale. A lot of staff left with more leaving, this is to include heads of    departments and line managers. I spoke briefly with several colleagues and    not getting any solid information contacted our head of HR department. In my    e-mail to her, dated the 6th of October, 2015, I have asked her about the    security of my job and about the overall state of the sale of the hotels.    She re-assured me that my employment was guaranteed for the next 2 years and    that there was no need to worry. In my phone conversations with her I have,    personally, asked her to be honest with me, because I could not afford to    lose my job knowing that I was coming back from maternity, + 16 weeks unpaid    maternity. I was once again told that my job was secure, and there was no    indication that there would be any changes to my role in accounts.      My typical hours of work would be 8 a.m. to 4 p.m. Monday to Friday. After    my maternity I had to be able to look after my daughter and therefore asked    her for an opportunity to work 4 days a week. Her answer was “yes” and the    day’s best suitable for the needs of the hotel were Monday to Thursday since    these days were the busies for the accounts department, especially after the    weekend. She also mentioned that the 4 days would suit them perfectly since    the Clyde Court hotel was to be closed on the 31st of December, therefore    reducing billing/invoicing workload for accounts. Having this information on    hand myself and my partner have arranged a child-minder for our daughter and    also adjusted his work days to fit my roster. She requested to put this in    writing and I did so. (Attachment 10)      At the start of November I have made a contact with the head of HR    department. In my e-mail to her, dated the 3rd of November I acknowledged    her of my return to work and requested a roster. Unfortunately I was unable    to get a reply for about 2 weeks, this to include numerous phone calls that    I have made to the hotel. My phone calls were going straight into full    voicemail or else picked by reception desk which was found extremely busy at    all times. One of these calls was picked up my Front of House Manager, who    said that she was too busy to talk to me about anything. I later realized    that I did not receive my wage, this to include accrued holidays and bank    holidays. I have once again contacted our head of HR department, in my    e-mail to her; dated the 13th of November (10 days after my first attempt to    make contact) I have expressed my worry about unpaid wage. Being left in the    dark in relation to my return to work roster and wage, I began talking to my    colleagues. Several of them told me that the hotel was losing staff; many,    especially from the Front of House/ reception, were leaving due to tight    rosters and, overall, chaotic working environment. My colleagues from    reception mentioned to me that they were waiting for my return to work    impatiently, since they knew I was to come back to reception desk. When I    spoke to my colleagues in accounts department they were expecting me, too    since our new Accounts Payable team member, I only know her by name Janka,    needed me ASAP in order to resolve another back-log of bills. I had to    assist her (on my return from maternity) just like I did assist our ex    Accounts Payable Accountant before my maternity. All of this created a    massive confusion, and on the 16th of November I sent another e-mail to our    head of HR department. In my e-mail to her I have asked her to clarify my    role and reminded her of a contract which we agreed to sign on my return    from maternity .The same day I received a reply stating that she facilitated    my request to move to day shifts, inducing my request to work 4 days Monday    to Thursday. She also asked me for my    measures. It came to me as a surprise as there is no specific dress-code for    the accounts department and I have also just purchased my suits for work. I    understood this could be necessary should I be asked to help at the    reception desk. (Attachment 11).      2 days prior to my return to work date, and despite the fact that I was    ringing the hotel for my roster for weeks, I was lucky to finally get one on    Sunday, the 22nd of November. My return to work was the 25th of November,    and not the 24th due to another confusion. My name was listed for early    shifts (7 a.m. to 3 p.m.) on the reception desk. I knew that reception desk    was short on staff due to line of sudden leaves and did not mind to help    out, however and even though I did agree to assist, I was not meant to work    at the reception desk full shift (8 hours). My role is Accounts Auditor    dealing with billing, invoicing and financial reports. The same day I have    send an e-mail to our head of HR department in which I have asked her to    clarify what was going on. “It was mentioned that I will be asked to    assist/help at the desk when needed during the busy hours, and I did agree    to that. What makes me worry now is that I am roistered to work full shift    at the desk. This is confusing, because I am not coming back to the position    of Receptionist. Am I?” this is my exact wording. On the 23rd of November,    one day before my official return to work, she replied “The position you    will be returning to is that of a Senior Receptionist.” The same day I have    send my reply to her: “The decision to transfer me to a reception on a    Senior Receptionist position is only introduced to me now, 48 hours before    my return to work. This was not agreed, signed or even discussed with me at    any level.” I have also mentioned that I am coming back to my role of an    Accounts Auditor to my desk in the office on the 25th of November as    rostered. (Attachment 12). Same evening I received a call from her asking me    to come in and meet her and Front of House Manager next day, the 24th of    November in order to discuss the above.      The meeting took place at the Ballsbridge hotel on the 24th of November and    both; our head of HR department and our Front of House Manager notified me    that my role of Accounts Auditor was no longer available to me. The position    they had for me was of a Senior Receptionist at the reception desk, and I    had no other option but to take up this new contract. I told them that this    was never brought to my attention until now, and that I could not be forced    into this new role because the hotel lacked staff at the reception desk. We    had an agreement and I was to return to the role of Accounts Auditor. My    role was never of a receptionist from the very start of my employment with    the Dalata Hotel Group, Ballsbridge Hotel. By bringing these changes into my    professional career, they were to destroy my reputation, curriculum and    overall life-long achievements which I built for years and years during my    employment in hospitality industry. I was a team leader in Leading Hotels of    the world league in numerous hotel properties, progressed into the position    of Front of House Supervisor, later turning to Nights Auditing and Night    Management. The offer of a Senior Receptionist was an obvious step down in    my career, and I asked both of them not punish me for the changes in the    hotel which I had no control over. I said that I will be please to return    back to my role and was willing to do so. The meeting ended with Mrs. Claire    Oliver promising to send me an e-mail where she had to give me her final    decision. I never received the reply and had to send her an e-mail next    morning, the 25th of November, reminding of the matter (Attachment 13). The    reply came back on the 26th of November in which she was now offering me to    come back to my role of a Night Auditor should I not wish to commence a role    of a Senior Receptionist (Attachment 14A & 14B). I have reminded her that it was her who personally offered me    a role in accounts department back in December, 2014 and re-assured me that    I will be coming back to perform Accounts Auditor duties after maternity. I    was intending to come back to my work ASAP. Because the letter was    back-dated (send on Thursday the 26th of November instead of Wednesday the    25th of November) I could not come to work on Friday, the 27th. Our    agreement was to work 4 days a week Monday to Thursday. On Monday, the 30th    of November, I was back to the hotel ready to perform my duties. She said    that my role of Accounts Auditor was no longer available to me; the job was    not there.      On the 1st of December, I have received a letter from her. In it she was    asking me to take the role of a receptionist on days or else, if by the 4th    of December I would not accept it, she will roster me for the shift of a    Night Auditor to begin on Monday, the 7th of December (Attachment 15)   On the 4th of December, I have send her a reply; “I took up a job of a Night    Auditor with your hotel to create and develop night procedures, variety of    accounts files and overall, SOP which the hotel did not have at the start of    my employment with you. The reason why you hired me on the first place.    Since I have succeeded in this position I was offered for the position of Accounts    Auditor on days. This time my role was to deal with the billing side of the    business rather than operational side of it. In both roles, I was readily    available to help at the reception desk when needed, however I never worker    there as a receptionist. I never intended to.” (Attachment 16). I have    received an automated reply; “I am currently out of the office with no    access to my emails, I will return on Monday, 14th December 2015.”    (Attachment 17)      Despite the fact that I was trying to resolve the issue for weeks before my    return to work and was readily available to perform my duties after    maternity on agreed role, including me coming to work as rostered, I was    given no opportunity to work in my role. Above everything else, I had plans    to breastfeed my baby till she’s to turn 24 months and had a great chance to    do so, however due to the stress which I have experienced for almost a month    now caused by my employer, my milk supply reduced gradually, and I can    barely feed my child twice a day. At this stage, the Night Auditor’s role is    not adequate since I have already adjusted everything (my partner’s work    days, childminder) to my role of Accounts Auditor working on day shifts as    it was agreed and proposed by Mrs. Claire Oliver earlier. So is the role of a    Senior Receptionist, which in my opinion came up only after the hotel failed    to retain staff at the reception desk, suffered line of voluntarily    resignations and tried to bully me into this new role knowing that I would    have no option but to accept it in order to have living for myself and my    small child.      My arrangements such as childminder are still in-tact despite the fact that    I am not getting any wage. I have made several attempts to come back to my    job and was unsuccessful.      My career and my personal plans are affected tremendously, especially now    that I have a child and no job to support my living. Between the 24th of    November and the 7th of December, hotel keeps me as employee yet I have no    position and no wage either. When contacted HR department in aim to resolve    the situation, the automated reply stated that the HR manager was away until    the 14th of December, 2015.