ADJUDICATION OFFICER DECISION

Adjudication Reference:  ADJ-00031353

Parties:

Complaint:

Date of Adjudication Hearing:  02/09/2021

Workplace Relations Commission Adjudication Officer:  Aideen Collard

Procedure:

In accordance with Section 8 of the Unfair Dismissals Acts 1977-2015, the Director General of the Workplace Relations Commission (hereinafter ‘WRC’) referred the aforesaid complaint received on 23rd December 2020, to me for adjudication.  I held a remote hearing on 2nd September 2021 at 3.30pm pursuant to the Civil Law and Criminal Law (Miscellaneous Provisions) Act 2020 and S. I. 359/2020, which designates the WRC as a body empowered to hold remote hearings. This hearing was also held in public pursuant to the Workplace Relations (Miscellaneous Provisions) Act 2021.  The Respondent’s Owner and HR Manager were in attendance on behalf of the Respondent.  There was no attendance by or on behalf of the Complainant.  A letter dated 27th July 2021 had issued to the Complainant’s Representative, confirming the date and time of the hearing and a remote hearing link subsequently issued.  The Representative came off record a few days before the hearing as the Complainant could not be contacted.  I satisfied myself that exhaustive efforts had been made by the WRC Administration to contact the Complainant including posting the hearing invite to his address and ringing him on his mobile number provided which rang out.  I heard from the Respondent before closing the hearing.  No communications have been received from the Complainant indicating any difficulty attending the hearing, seeking a postponement or withdrawing this complaint.  It is therefore necessary to issue a decision in this matter to bring it to a conclusion.

|Summary of Respondent’s Case:

The Respondent’s Owner and HR Manager were in attendance at this hearing prepared to present evidence in defence of this complaint in accordance with documentation submitted including raising a preliminary issue as to whether the Complainant had the requisite one year’s service given a break in his employment.

Summary of Complainant’s Case:

The Complainant had submitted a complaint of unfair dismissal against the Respondent contrary to the Unfair Dismissals Acts 1977-2015.  There was no attendance by the Complainant at this hearing to pursue this complaint and/or give evidence including addressing the issue of the requisite length of his service.

Decision:

Section 8 of the Unfair Dismissals Acts 1977-2015 requires that I make a decision in relation to this complaint.  I am satisfied that the Complainant and/or his Representative were properly notified of the remote hearing of this complaint as scheduled for 2nd September 2021 at 3.30pm.  I am further satisfied that the WRC Administration made exhaustive efforts to contact him directly to notify him of the hearing details and confirm his attendance at the hearing after his Representative came off record.  To date, no communications have been received from the Complainant indicating any difficulty attending the hearing, seeking a postponement or withdrawing this complaint.  I therefore consider his non-attendance at this hearing to constitute an abandonment of his complaint.  In the absence of pursuit of this complaint and/or any evidence proffered by or on behalf of the Complainant, I find that he was not unfairly dismissed.

Dated:   29/09/2021

Workplace Relations Commission Adjudication Officer:  Aideen Collard