EMPLOYMENT APPEALS TRIBUNAL
CASE NO.
UD1126/2015
RP419/2015
MN517/2015
WT234/2015
CLAIM(S) OF:
Diana Perry
- claimant
against
Christopher Mee and Associates Limited
- respondent
under
UNFAIR DISMISSALS ACTS 1977 TO 2007
ORGANISATION OF WORKING TIME ACT 1997
MINIMUM NOTICE AND TERMS OF EMPLOYMENT ACTS, 1973 TO 2005
REDUNDANCY PAYMENTS ACTS 1967 TO 2007
I certify that the Tribunal
(Division of Tribunal)
Chairman: Ms. K.T. O'Mahony B.L.
Members: Mr D. Hegarty
Mr O. Wills
heard this claim at Cork on 27th October 2016
Representation:
Claimant(s) :
Kelly & Dullea, Solicitors, 5 South Mall, Cork
Respondent(s) :
Mr Terence O'Sullivan, Terence J O'Sullivan, Solicitors, Unit 1b, 6 Lapps Quay, Cork
The determination of the Tribunal was as follows:-
Preliminary Issue:
The respondent contended that the claims were out of time.
The Facts
The claimant commenced working for the respondent in either March or April 2005. On 4 June 2010 she received two weeks’ notice that her employment was ending on 18 June 2010.
When the claimant sought unemployment benefit from the Department of Social Protection an issue arose as to her employment status with her former employer, the respondent herein. She applied to Scope to determine whether in her previous employment she had been an employee employed under a contract of service or an independent contractor employed under a contract for services.
The Deciding Officer’s decision, communicated on 27 August 2012, was that the claimant was an employee. On appeal, the Appeals Officer upheld the Deciding Officer’s decision. This latter decision was communicated to the respondent on 31 March 2015 and to the claimant at a later date.
Determination on Preliminary Issue
The claimant’s employment with the respondent was terminated on 18 June 2010.
On 8 October 2015, the claimant lodged claims with the Tribunal under the above mentioned Acts.
As this is more than five years after the termination of her employment, the claims under the Unfair Dismissals Acts, the Redundancy Payments Acts and the Organisation of Working Time Act are out of time and the Tribunal has no jurisdiction to hear those claims. It was open to the claimant to lodge her claims within the prescribed statutory time limits and seek an adjournment in the event of those claims being listed for hearing prior to receipt of the Scope decisions.
The claimant’s employment with the respondent commenced on 14 March 2005 according to her contract document with respondent or on 29 April 2005 according to Scope details and it was terminated on 18 June 2010. In either case the claimant had over five years’ service with the respondent at the time of the termination of her employment. Thus, she was entitled to four weeks’ notice of the termination of her employment. Having received two weeks’ notice of the termination of her employment she remains entitled to two weeks’ pay in lieu of notice. The Tribunal awards the claimant compensation in the sum of €1,287.00 (it being equivalent to two weeks’ pay) under the Minimum Notice and Terms of Employment Acts 1973 to 2005.
Sealed with the Seal of the
Employment Appeals Tribunal
This ________________________
(Sgd.) ________________________
(CHAIRMAN)