LCR22369

1.Appeal of Adjudication Officer Decision No. ADJ-00022093.

BACKGROUND:

2.The Worker appealed the Adjudication Officer’s Recommendation to the Labour Court on 20 May 2020 in accordance with Section 13(9) of the Industrial Relations Act, 1969.

On 9 April 2020 the Adjudication Officer issued the following Recommendation: -

“As per LCR2611 the worker is entitled to benefit from the on-call allowance. This ‘on-call allowance’ should apply where the worker is clearly ‘on-call’ as would normally apply.”

A Labour Court hearing took place on 19 February 2021.

DECISION:

This dispute came before the Court by way of an appeal by the Union on behalf of the Claimant against the Recommendation of an Adjudication Officer. The Adjudication Officer recommended that“the on-call allowance should apply where the worker is clearly “on-call” as would normally apply”.

The issue in dispute concerns the application to the Claimant of an On Call/Stand By Allowance. The Claimant has been employed as Head Gardener with Galway University Hospital/Merlin Park Hospital since 1978. In March 2016, he was regularised as a Craftworker, retrospective to October 2013 and is now recognised as a Craft Foreman and paid accordingly.

The Union on his behalf submitted a claim that the Claimant should be paid an On Call/Stand By Allowance retrospective to October 2013. It maintained that the Claimant should be paid the Allowance in a similar manner to other Craftworkers employed by the Hospital and in accordance with the Craft Agreement. The Union claimed that the Claimant should be paid an On Call/Stand By Allowance of 4 hours pay per week (1 extra hour on Public Holidays) for every week of the year, retrospective to October 2013.

Management stated that the Claimant provides cover for gritting the Hospital grounds during the winter months. It provided details which indicated that he is required to carry out this work on average about five times per annum and is paid the appropriate overtime rate. Otherwise, he carries out planned works outside of his normal working day, on an overtime basis as required. Having reviewed his call out record, management made an offer to the Claimant on 14th May 2020, to pay him three months continuous On Call payment (December to February each year), amounting to €1,157 per annum, backdated to December 2016.

The Court notes that in accordance with the HSE Terms and Conditions of Employment, On Call/Stand By is defined as a period when an employee is scheduled for a designated period to be available for emergency work, and an employee on stand-by makes a specific commitment to be available immediately to return to work if requested. The Court notes that Management stated that the On Call/Stand By Allowance is a pensionable allowance.

Having considered the written and oral submissions of both parties, the Court is satisfied that the offer made by Management on 14th May 2020 was a reasonable and fair offer in the circumstances and recommends that it should be accepted in full and final settlement of this claim.

The Adjudication Officer’s Recommendation is varied accordingly.

The Court so Decides.

	Signed on behalf of the Labour Court
	Caroline Jenkinson
NJ	______________________
22 February 2021	Deputy Chairman