ADJUDICATION OFFICER DECISION/RECOMMENDATION

Adjudication Reference: ADJ-00008298

Parties:

Complaint(s):

Date of Adjudication Hearing: 30/08/2017

Workplace Relations Commission Adjudication Officer: Jim O'Connell

Procedure:

In accordance with Section 41 of the Workplace Relations Act, 2015 following the referral of the complaint(s)/dispute(s) to me by the Director General, I inquired into the complaint(s)/dispute(s) and gave the parties an opportunity to be heard by me and to present to me any evidence relevant to the complaint(s)/dispute(s).

Background

The claimant submitted that he commenced employment with the respondent on the 2^nd August 2016 until the 24th February 2017 when his employment was terminated. He worked 40 hours per week and he was paid €400 gross (€365 net.) He submitted that he did sign some paper and despite repeated requests to the respondent they failed to give him a copy of his signed contract of employment.

In an email to the claimant from the respondent it was stated by their representative

“Having had a look at your file for a signed copy of your contract I was unable to locate the signed copy. In any event, you have been furnished with a copy of your contract which was given to you at the commencement of your employment and also a copy was forwarded to your email as recently as 13^th February”

The claimant stated that the respondent had emailed him a draft unsigned copy of a contract.

He stated that in accordance with section 3 of The Terms of Employment (Information) Act 1994 he was entitled to a copy of his signed copy.

Findings

The respondent did not show.

Section 3 of the Terms of Employment (Information) Act 1994 states

3. An employer shall, not later than 2 months after the commencement of an employee's employment with the employer, give or cause to be given to the employee a statement in writing containing the following particulars of the terms of the employee's employment, that is to say—

(a) the full names of the employer and the employee,

(b) the address of the employer in the State or, where appropriate, the address of the principal place of the relevant business of the employer in the State or the registered office (within the meaning of the Companies Act, 1963 ),

(c) the place of work or, where there is no fixed or main place of work, a statement specifying that the employee is required or permitted to work at various places,

(d) the title of the job or nature of the work for which the employee is employed,

(e) the date of commencement of the employee's contract of employment,

(f) in the case of a temporary contract of employment, the expected duration thereof or, if the contract of employment is for a fixed term, the date on which the contract expires,

(g) the rate or method of calculation of the employee's remuneration,

(h) the length of the intervals between the times at which remuneration is paid, whether a week, a month or any other interval,

(i) any terms or conditions relating to hours of work (including overtime),

(j) any terms or conditions relating to paid leave (other than paid sick leave),

(k) any terms or conditions relating to—

(i) incapacity for work due to sickness or injury and paid sick leave, and

(ii) pensions and pension schemes,

(l) the period of notice which the employee is required to give and entitled to receive (whether by or under statute or under the terms of the employee's contract of employment) to determine the employee's contract of employment or, where this cannot be indicated when the information is given, the method for determining such periods of notice,

(m) a reference to any collective agreements which directly affect the terms and conditions of the employee's employment including, where the employer is not a party to such agreements, particulars of the bodies or institutions by whom they were made.

(2) A statement shall be given to an employee under subsection (1) notwithstanding that the employee's employment ends before the end of the period within which the statement is required to be given.

(3) The particulars specified in paragraphs (g), (h), (i), (j), (k) and (l) of the said subsection (1), may be given to the employee in the form of a reference to provisions of statutes or instruments made under statute or of any other laws or of any administrative provisions or collective agreements, governing those particulars which the employee has reasonable opportunities of reading during the course of the employee's employment or which are reasonably accessible to the employee in some other way.

(4) A statement furnished by an employer under subsection (1) shall be signed and dated by or on behalf of the employer.

(5) A copy of the said statement shall be retained by the employer during the period of the employee's employment and for a period of 1 year thereafter.

Decision:

Section 41 of the Workplace Relations Act 2015 requires that I make a decision in relation to the complaint(s)/dispute(s) in accordance with the relevant redress provisions under Schedule 6 of that Act.

I find based on the uncontested evidence the respondent failed to provide the claimant with a copy of his signed contract of employment and I award him €400 in compensation.

Dated:   12/10/17

Workplace Relations Commission Adjudication Officer: Jim O'Connell

Key Words: