ADJUDICATION OFFICER DECISION
Adjudication Reference: ADJ-00006979
Anonymised Parties
A Restaurant Worker
An Ethnic Restaurant
Act
Complaint/Dispute Reference No.
Date of Receipt
Complaint seeking adjudication by the Workplace Relations Commission under section 6 of the Payment of Wages Act, 1991
CA-00009515-001
02/02/2017
Date of Adjudication Hearing: 24/05/2017
Workplace Relations Commission Adjudication Officer: Pat Brady
Location of Hearing: Room G.04 Lansdowne House
Procedure:
In accordance with Section 41 of the Workplace Relations Act, 2015 following the referral of the complaint to me by the Director General, I inquired into the complaint and gave the parties an opportunity to be heard by me and to present to me any evidence relevant to the complaint.
Background:
The complainant commenced work with the respondent on September 8th 2016 and her employment terminated on November 17th 2016, about nine weeks later.
She did not receive any wages for her period of employment or annual leave.
Summary of Complainant’s Case:
The complainant expected that she would not be paid until the end of her first month as that is the normal practise I her home country.
However, after a month and then continuing over the rest of her employment her employer made excuses as to why he could not pay her. She managed to live on the tips she was given but the respondent also insisted on keeping about half of them. She could earn €25 per day in tips.
He promised to pay her on a number of occasions but failed to do so.
In due course she left. She was owed €3,330 (being nine weeks at forty hours per week calculated at the National Minimum Wage of €9.25).
The respondent did give the complainant €55 and when she told him she was leaving he gave her another €100; this after almost nine weeks in employment.
After she left her employment the respondent gave her another €400, a total of €555.00.
Summary of Respondent’s Case:
The respondent did not attend nor was any explanation offered for the non-attendance.
Findings and Conclusions:
The facts presented to the hearing represented shocking treatment of the complainant, a young worker.
To judge from the conduct of the respondent (who hailed from the same South American country as the complainant) he clearly considered that paying wages to the complainant was something of a discretionary option.
It was bad enough that he was prepared to disregard his legal responsibilities under the Payment of Wages Act but this was compounded by depriving her of half of the tips she had earned. I estimate on the basis of her evidence that she was owed €562 in tips. (Half of €25 per day for the nine week period).
I therefore discount the €555 given to her after she left her employment in calculating the statutory entitlement to wages under the Act.
Decision:
Section 41 of the Workplace Relations Act 2015 requires that I make a decision in relation to the complaint in accordance with the relevant redress provisions under Schedule 6 of that Act.
I uphold complaint CA-00009515-001 under Section 6 of the Payment of Wages Act, 1991 and award the complainant €3,330.00 subject to normal statutory deductions.
Dated: 12th June 2017
Workplace Relations Commission Adjudication Officer: Pat Brady
Key Words:
Payment of Wages.