ADJUDICATION OFFICER DECISION
Adjudication Reference: ADJ-00025353
Parties:
| Complainant | Respondent |
Anonymised Parties | Customer services rep | Fast food takeaway restaurant |
Representatives | Richard Stapleton Richard Stapleton Solicitors | none |
Complaint(s):
Act | Complaint/Dispute Reference No. | Date of Receipt |
Complaint seeking adjudication by the Workplace Relations Commission under section 24 of the National Minimum Wage Act, 2000 | CA-00032161-001 | 13/11/2019 |
Complaint seeking adjudication by the Workplace Relations Commission under Section 8 of the Unfair Dismissals Act, 1977 | CA-00032161-002 | 13/11/2019 |
Complaint seeking adjudication by the Workplace Relations Commission under Section 12 of the Minimum Notice & Terms of Employment Act, 1973 | CA-00032161-005 | 13/11/2019 |
Date of Adjudication Hearing: 01/02/2021
Workplace Relations Commission Adjudication Officer: Marguerite Buckley
Procedure:
In accordance with Section 41 of the Workplace Relations Act, 2015 and Section 8 of the Unfair Dismissals Acts, 1977 – 2015 following the referral of the complaints to me by the Director General, I inquired into the complaints at a remote hearing and gave the parties an opportunity to be heard by me and to present to me any evidence relevant to the complaints.
Background:
There was no attendance by the Respondent at the hearing. I waited a suitable period for the Respondent to either join the hearing or contact the case officer whose phone details she had to explain a reason for her non-attendance. |
Summary of Complainant’s Case:
CA-00032159-001. This complaint was withdrawn by the complainant at the hearing. CA-00032159-002. The Complainant gave evidence of the termination of employment by the Respondent on 3 October 2019. The Complainant's colleague had a query regarding her hourly rate as she believed she was not in receipt of the correct rate of pay. She raised a query with the Respondent regarding her payslips. She did not receive a satisfactory answer from the Respondent. On the 3 October 2019 there was an incident with a customer over a food order. The Respondent took issue with the Complainant as regards her involvement in the food order. She would not let the Complainant explain that she did not serve the lady who had complained. The Respondent said to the Complainant "there is the door". The Complainant left the restaurant and the Respondent made no contact with her since. The Respondent did not pay her for that week's wages. The Complainant gave evidence of her efforts to find new employment in accordance with her obligation to mitigate her loss. The Complainant had young children and the working hours with the Respondent suited her. She worked evenings from 4 PM to 3 AM and from 6 PM to 1 AM. It was difficult for her to find work hours that suited her childcare arrangements. The Complainant didn't drive and found it very difficult to find any work. She made the decision to return to her native Slovakia at the end of November 2020. CA-00032159-003. The Complainant's case is that she was summarily dismissed on 4 October 2019. She did not receive any notice of the termination of employment. She had been working for the Respondent since 1 March 2010. |
Summary of Respondent’s Case:
There was no attendance for the Respondent. |
Findings and Conclusions:
CA-00032159-001. This complaint was withdrawn by the complainant at the hearing. CA-00032159-002. I accept the Complainant's evidence of circumstances which led to the termination of employment. The Complainant was summarily dismissed without any investigation or fair procedures. CA-00032159-003. The Complainant was dismissed from her employment and was not provided with any notice in accordance with contract or the Minimum Notice & Terms of Employment Act, 1973. |
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.
Section 8 of the Unfair Dismissals Acts, 1977 – 2015 requires that I make a decision in relation to the unfair dismissal claim consisting of a grant of redress in accordance with section 7 of the 1977 Act.
CA-00032159-001. This complaint was withdrawn by the Complainant at the hearing. CA-00032159-002. The Complainant explained that she was paid €10.00 per hour. The Complainant advised that she worked on average 19 hours per week. An award of compensation for unfair dismissal to make reparation for loss incurred in consequence of the dismissal. I award the Complainant 35 weeks’ pay at €190.00 gross per week which amounts to €6,650.00. CA-00032159-003. The Complainant had over 9 years’ service with the Respondent. She was entitled to 4 weeks’ notice of the termination of her employment. I award the Complainant €760.00 with respect to her notice payment. |
Dated: 19th May 2021
Workplace Relations Commission Adjudication Officer: Marguerite Buckley
Key Words:
Summary dismissal. No notice. |