LCR21837

The worker dispute concerns the post and title of Teaching Fellow to which she was appointed on a CID contract. She is seeking that the title and salary scale for the position of Assistant Professor so that she can carry out the full range of duties including research associated with that post. Having considered the matter, I am not recommending that the worker be given the title of Assistant Professor as that is a post must be filled by competitive competition. I also note the fact that 7 or 8 other workers in a similar situation were given similar contracts around the same time.

In calculating the worker’s point on the incremental salary scale for the post of Teaching Fellow, I recommend that the employer consider the worker’s experience as a lecturer with the college prior to the appointment to her current position and recommend giving her credit for this experience on her current incremental scale. In relation to the worker’s grievance about research, I recommend that the employer meet with the worker and her union representative to determine if she could be facilitated with an element of research within her current contract for the benefit of her career progression.

The Union on behalf of the Worker appealed the Adjudication Officer's Recommendation to the Labour Court on 19 September 2018 in accordance with Section 13(9) of the Industrial Relations Act, 1969. The Employer subsequently appealed the Adjudication Officer's Recommendation to the Labour Court on 25 September 2018. A Labour Court hearing took place on 23 November 2018. The following is the Decision of the Court:

DECISION:

Background

The Worker is on a career break from the College.
Prior to her career break, she was on a Contract of Indefinite Duration, (CID), as a term-time Teaching Fellow covering 9 months of the year in the discipline of Italian. She was paid on the second point of the Teaching Fellow pay scale, having previously had a number of short-term contracts in the College.

Her claim is that her responsibilities, duties, role and qualifications are not reflected in her job title and salary structure and she is seeking to have her post titled as Assistant Professor,(Lecturer).

The matter was the subject of a recommendation from a WRC Adjudication Officer, which did not recommend that the Worker be given the title of Assistant Professor as that is a post that must be filled by open competition and also because there were other workers who were given similar contracts around the same time. However, the Adjudication Officer recommended that the employer consider the Worker's previous experience as a lecturer and that she be given incremental credit for this. It was recommended also that discussions take place with the Worker and her union to determine if she could be facilitated with an element of research within her current contract.

Both parties appealed the finding. The Worker appealed the recommendation not to give her the title, salary scale and position of Assistant Professor. The College appealed the recommendation regarding incremental credit and the recommendation regarding the possible facilitation of research.

Preliminary Issue.

In view of the reference to other workers with similar contracts, the Court needed to establish if this case was a stand-alone matter affecting an individual and, therefore, arising to be dealt with under Section 13 of the Industrial Relations Act or whether it was, in fact, a collective issue, in which case the Court would not have jurisdiction to hear the case referred under that section of the Act.

Having heard the parties on the matter, the Court was satisfied that it had jurisdiction to hear the case.

Union arguments

• 
  1. The Worker’s duties, responsibilities, role and qualifications were not reflected in her title as Teaching Fellow, which is damaging to her international reputation as a scholar and researcher.

  2. The Worker has highlighted her concerns regarding the lack of recognition of her research skills and only accepted the role of Teaching Fellow on a ‘without prejudice’ basis.

  3. Prior to becoming a Teaching Fellow, the Worker held the title of Adjunct Asst. Professor on a short term contract, which indicates active engagement with research and teaching and she was offered a Contract of Indefinite Duration for a role that was substantially different than her previous position.

  4. The Worker was denied permission to supervise PhD students, which undermines her opportunities for future research.

  5. The Worker disputes that TCD had not asked her to engage in research since 2011.

  6. The fact that the Worker was told that she was not eligible to apply for research funding shows that her terms of employment were changed because as an Adjunct Assistant Professor she was entitled to apply for internal research funding.

  7. If the issue of grading requires a professional, independent study then that should be commissioned.

Employer arguments

• 
  1. In October 2016, the Worker sought to progress her concerns in relation to her contract as an Adjunct Assistant Professor. In March 2017, a pensionable, (term time), Teaching Fellowship post was offered to the Worker, who, while appreciative of the offer, expressed the wish to be confirmed as an Assistant Professor. Subsequently, notwithstanding her reservations, the Worker signed the contract.

  2. The offer of Teaching Fellowship posts to 8 people, including the Worker, was made possible by the suppression of posts and involved the provision of Contracts of Indefinite Duration at substantially improved rates of pay.

  3. The duties of the Worker as a Teaching Fellow did not change from those in her role as an Adjunct Assistant Professor. Research is not, and was not, part of either role. Any research carried out by the Worker was outside of her contractual obligations.

  4. Implementation of the salary recommendation from the Adjudication Officer would have potential wider ramifications and any incorporation of a research element into the duties of a Teaching Fellow would set a difficult precedent.

Recommendation

The Court upholds the recommendation of the Adjudication Officer that the Worker not be given the title, salary scale and position of Assistant Professor, as such posts are filled by open competition only.

The Court accepts the concern of the College about wider implications if the Worker was to be given incremental credit for previous experience as a lecturer and the Court does not uphold that element of the Adjudication Officer’s recommendation. However, it emerged during the course of the hearing that there may be a period of relevant service elsewhere in the Public Service for which the Worker did not receive credit and to which she may be entitled.

The Court upholds the recommendation of the Adjudication Officer that the employer meet with the Worker and her union representative to determine if she could be facilitated with an element of research within her contract as a Teaching Fellow.

The recommendation of the Adjudication Officer is varied accordingly.

Signed on behalf of the Labour Court



Tom Geraghty
30 November 2018______________________
MNDeputy Chairman



NOTE

Enquiries concerning this Decision should be addressed to Michael Neville, Court Secretary.