ADJUDICATION OFFICER DECISION

Adjudication Decision Reference: ADJ-00006432

Complaint for Resolution:

Date of Adjudication Hearing: 24/02/2017

Workplace Relations Commission Adjudication Officer: Louise Boyle

Procedure:

In accordance with Section 41(4) 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.

Attendance at Hearing:

Complainant’s Submission and Presentation:

The complainant commenced work on Thurs 6^th October 2016. The first two weeks she worked on average 17 hours per week over two nights each week and got paid cash-in-hand for each of those weeks. She worked Friday 21^st October from 8p.m-4a.m., and Saturday 22^nd October from 8 p.m.-5 a.m. On the Saturday night/Sunday morning she burned her hand. She told her manager the following day that she could not work that night and his response was that the water was not that hot. She called in the following week to get paid and to see what nights she was needed to work but her manager was not there. Another employee told her that the manager was gone to New Zealand for 3 weeks. She text him 7^th November, 8^th November and 9^th November, 5^th December and 8^th December regarding how she would collect her wages but he never replied. She sent him a WhatsApp message on 24^th November and 21^st December asking when would she be working again and when could she collect her payment but did not receive any reply. She said that it appears that the premises are now closed down but that previously she had left a letter in and the following day when she checked the letter was gone.

Respondent’s Submission and Presentation:

The Respondent did not engage with the Workplace Relations Commission in relation to the complaint. The Respondent did not attend the Hearing. I confirmed that a letter had issued notifying the Respondent of the date, time and location of the hearing, and in the circumstances, I find that their non-attendance without any acceptable explanation to be unreasonable in the circumstances.

Findings:

It was regrettable that the respondent did not attend the hearing to put forward a defence to the above and therefore, the only evidence I have is that of the complainant.

Section 5 of the Payment of Wages Act sets out:

(1) An employer shall not make a deduction from the wages of an employee (or receive any payment from an employee) unless—

(a) the deduction (or payment) is required or authorised to be made by virtue of any statute or any instrument made under statute,

(b) the deduction (or payment) is required or authorised to be made by virtue of a term of the employee's contract of employment included in the contract before, and in force at the time of, the deduction or payment, or

(c) in the case of a deduction, the employee has given his prior consent in writing to it.

(2) An employer shall not make a deduction from the wages of an employee in respect of—

(a) any act or omission of the employee, or

(b) any goods or services supplied to or provided for the employee by the employer the supply or provision of which is necessary to the employment….”

Having heard the uncontested evidence, it appears that the complainant worked for two shifts that she did not receive payment for.   She made numerous attempts to contact the respondent regarding the non-payment of her monies but he did not respond to any of her messages – details of these messages were shown at the hearing.

Section 6 of the Payment of Wages Act sets out:

Sec 6(2) of the Payment of Wages Act states, “the commissioner shall order the employer to pay to the employee compensation of such an amount … not exceeding (a) the net amount of wages”.

The complaint therefore is well founded and I hereby require that the respondent pay the claimant the amount payable to her of €183.00 nett.

Decision:

Section 41(4) 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.

Based on the uncontested evidence of the Complainant I find and declare that the complaint under Section 6 of the Payment of Wages Act 1991 is well founded and it is upheld and the Complainant is entitled to be paid €183.00 nett.

Dated:   8^th May 2017