ADJUDICATION OFFICER RECOMMENDATION
Adjudication Reference: ADJ-00014477
Parties:
| Worker | Employer |
Anonymised Parties | A Paramedic | A Health Service Provider |
Representatives | The Worker did not attend or was not represented at the Hearing | The Employer attended in person |
Disputes:
Act | Dispute Reference No. | Date of Receipt |
Complaint seeking adjudication by the Workplace Relations Commission under section 13 of the Industrial Relations Act, 1969 | CA-00018798-001 | 30/04/2018 |
Complaint seeking adjudication by the Workplace Relations Commission under section 13 of the Industrial Relations Act, 1969 | CA-00018864-001 | 02/05/2018 |
Date of Adjudication Hearing: 11/10/2018
Workplace Relations Commission Adjudication Officer: Enda Murphy
Procedure:
In accordance with Section 13 of the Industrial Relations Acts 1969following the referral of the disputes to me by the Director General, I inquired into the disputes and gave the parties an opportunity to be heard by me and to present to me any evidence relevant to the disputes.
Background:
The Worker is employed by the Employer as a Paramedic. This dispute relates to a claim by the Worker that she was placed on the incorrect payscale following appointment to her current grade. |
Summary of Worker’s Case:
The Worker did not attend or was not represented at the hearing in order to present her case in relation to the disputes. |
Summary of Employer’s Case:
The Employer was in attendance and ready to present its case in relation to the disputes. |
Findings and Conclusions:
The Workplace Relations Commission (WRC) received a telephone call from the Worker’s representative on 11 October, 2018, prior to the scheduled starting time of the hearing, to request a postponement of the hearing. This telephone call was followed by an e-mail from the Worker’s representative (which was received by the WRC at 10:11 am) confirming the request for a postponement on the basis that correspondence had been received from the Employer the previous day at 5 pm with a view to resolving the dispute. The Worker’s representative was informed in a telephone call by the WRC Secretariat that the application for a postponement was not being granted and that the hearing would proceed as scheduled with a starting time of 10:30 am. Neither the Worker nor her representative were in attendance at the hearing on 11 October, 2018. I am satisfied that the Worker’s representative was informed that the postponement request was refused and that the hearing would proceed as scheduled. In the circumstances, I find that the Worker’s non-attendance at the hearing to be unreasonable in the circumstances. |
Decision:
Section 13 of the Industrial Relations Acts, 1969 requires that I make a recommendation in relation to the dispute.
CA-00018798-001 and CA-00018864-001 I find that the Worker’s non-attendance at the Hearing to be unreasonable in the circumstances. Accordingly, I recommend that the disputes under the Industrial Relations Act 1969 are dismissed for want of prosecution. |
Dated: 14th November 2018
Workplace Relations Commission Adjudication Officer: Enda Murphy
Key Words:
Industrial Relations Act 1969 – Trade Dispute – Section 13 – Failure of Worker to attend Hearing - Disputes dismissed for want of prosection |