ADJUDICATION OFFICER DECISION/RECOMMENDATION

Adjudication Reference: ADJ-00015806

Complaints:

Act	Complaint/Dispute Reference No.	Date of Receipt
Complaint seeking adjudication by the Workplace Relations Commission under section 27 of the Organisation of Working Time Act, 1997	CA-00020530-001	13/07/2018

Date of Adjudication Hearing: 20/12/2018

Workplace Relations Commission Adjudication Officer: Rosaleen Glackin

Procedure:

In accordance with Section 41 of the Workplace Relations Act, and 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 was employed with the Respondent from 9th January 2018 until the Employment terminated on 29th March 2018. He was paid €2000.00 a month or €11.53 an hour and he worked 40 hours a week 9am to 5pm over five days. The Complainant was not provided with a written statement of his Terms and Conditions of Employment. The Complainant referred a complaint to the Workplace Relations Commission on 13th July 2018 alleging the Respondent had breached Section 14 of the Organisation of Working Time Act, 1997 -2015.

Summary of Complainant’s Case:

The Complainant stated that he sometimes worked on a Sunday but was not paid a Sunday Premium. The Adjudication Officer explained at the Hearing that the reference period covered by this complaint was from 14th January 2018 to 29th March 2018. The Adjudication Officer also informed the Complainant there were 3 Sundays in January – 4 Sundays in February and 4 Sundays in March and requested him to set out which Sundays he had worked.

The Complainant confirmed at the Hearing that he had received his wages and confirmed the payslip dated 15th March 2018 which shows that the Complainant was paid €18.00 an hour for working three hours which was a Sunday.

Summary of Respondent’s Case:

The Respondent stated that the Complainant had completed Interpreters Attendance Forms for the month of March 2018 but none of these show the Complainant worked on a Sunday. – Copies provided.

The Respondent also provided copies of emails between the Parties dated 12th June 2018 in which the Respondent is seeking attendance forms be completed by the Complainant for 17 specified dates in February and March 2018. Only one of these is a Sunday – 25th February 2018. There was no evidence these had been completed by the Complainant.

Findings and Conclusions:

On the basis of the evidence presented at the Hearing the Complainant was unable to substantiate his complaint that he had worked some Sundays in the reference period but had not been paid a Sunday Premium.

The Burden of proof is initially to provide evidence of the complaint and to substantiate the complaint. The Complainant was unable to provide any evidence to the Hearing of Sundays he worked in the reference period from 14/1/2018 to 29/3/2018 when the employment terminated. There was evidence from a payslip dated 15th March 2018 which shows that the Complainant was paid €18.00 an hour for three hours worked on a Sunday and the Complainant confirmed he had been paid these wages.

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.

On the basis of the evidence and in accordance with Section 41(5) of the Workplace Relations Act, 2015 I declare this complaint is not well founded as the Complainant failed to provide any evidence to the Hearing to substantiate his complaint.

Dated: 15/03/2019

Workplace Relations Commission Adjudication Officer: Rosaleen Glackin

Key Words:

Organisation of Working Time Act, 1997 -2015. Section 14 – Sunday Premium – Complainant failed to provide any evidence of Sundays worked to substantiate his complaint.