ADJUDICATION OFFICER DECISION/RECOMMENDATION
Adjudication Reference: ADJ-00032393
Parties:
| Complainant | Respondent |
Parties | Desmond Doran | Assist Facilities Services Limited |
Representatives | The complainant did not attend and was not represented at the hearing. | Mr. Barry Dunne |
Complaint(s):
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-00040825-001 | 04/11/2020 |
Complaint seeking adjudication by the Workplace Relations Commission under section 27 of the Organisation of Working Time Act, 1997 | CA-00040825-002 | 04/11/2020 |
Complaint seeking adjudication by the Workplace Relations Commission under section 6 of the Payment of Wages Act, 1991 | CA-00040825-003 | 04/11/2020 |
Complaint seeking adjudication by the Workplace Relations Commission under section 27 of the Organisation of Working Time Act, 1997 | CA-00040825-004 | 04/11/2020 |
Complaint seeking adjudication by the Workplace Relations Commission under section 27 of the Organisation of Working Time Act, 1997 | CA-00040825-005 | 04/11/2020 |
Complaint seeking adjudication by the Workplace Relations Commission under section 7 of the Terms of Employment (Information) Act, 1994 | CA-00040825-006 | 04/11/2020 |
Complaint seeking adjudication by the Workplace Relations Commission under section 6 of the Payment of Wages Act, 1991 | CA-00040825-003 | 09/03/2021 |
Complaint seeking adjudication by the Workplace Relations Commission under section 27 of the Organisation of Working Time Act, 1997 | CA-00040825-004 | 09/03/2021 |
Complaint seeking adjudication by the Workplace Relations Commission under section 27 of the Organisation of Working Time Act, 1997 | CA-00040825-005 | 09/03/2021 |
Date of Adjudication Hearing: 23/07/2021
Workplace Relations Commission Adjudication Officer: Emer O'Shea
Procedure:
In accordance with Section 41 of the Workplace Relations Act, 2015 , Section 27 of the Organisation of Working Time Act ,1997, Section 6 of the Payment of Wages Act 1991,Section 7 of the Terms of Employment Information Act , 1994 following the referral of the complaint(s)/dispute(s) to me by the Director General, I inquired into the complaint(s)/dispute(s) and gave the parties an opportunity to be heard by me and to present to me any evidence relevant to the complaint(s)/dispute(s).
Background:
The claimant was employed as a mobile technician with the respondent from the 6th.January 2020 to the 31st.March 2020 and complained on the 4th.November 2020 that he was not paid his holiday entitlement or public holiday entitlement which he alleged was due on the 25th.March 2020.A further complaint was received on the 9th.March 2021 in which he complained that the respondent was in breach of the Organisation of Working Time Act 1997 for failing to pay him outstanding leave and Public Holiday entitlements which he alleged were due on the 30th.March 2020.He further complained that the respondent was in breach of the Payment of Wages Act 1991 for failing to pay him outstanding wages, leave and overtime.The complainant also complained that the respondent was in breach of the Terms of Employment (Information)Act 1994 for failing to furnish him with written terms and conditions of employment. |
Summary of Complainant’s Case:
The claimant did ant attend and was not represented at the hearing.The hearing was delayed for 20 minutes to allow the claimant to connect to the virtual hearing.The concierge for the hearing made a number of calls to the claimant’s telephone but received no response.There was no contact from the claimant to the hearing or to the WRC about connection difficulties or seeking assistance in accessing the hearing. An email was received from the claimant by the WRC at 18.38 on the 23rd.July in which the claimant stated “Pardo my online absence for this morning but every method to join this meeting failed .Could you reschedule another hearing please”. I am satisfied that the complainant was duly notified of the date and time of the hearing and do not accept that any plausible explanation was advanced for failing to attend the hearing. |
Summary of Respondent’s Case:
Mr.B Dunne appeared on behalf of the respondent and denied the claimant’s allegations.He expressed surprise at the claimant’s alleged failure to contact him directly with a view to resolving the matter.He said that while he awaited definitive clarification from his accountant on the exact amounts paid to the claimant , he estimated that on the basis of his own calculations , there was no pay outstanding and that he had more than met his legal obligations by continuing to pay the claimant to the 31st.March even though work was suspended from the 19th.March owing to the first Covid lockdown.He calculated that the claimant was overpaid by one day.The respondent asserted that the claimant was furnished with written terms and conditions of employment when he commenced in January 2020. |
Preliminary Matter of Time Limits
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-00040825-001 | 04/11/2020 |
Complaint seeking adjudication by the Workplace Relations Commission under section 27 of the Organisation of Working Time Act, 1997 | CA-00040825-002 | 04/11/2020 |
Complaint seeking adjudication by the Workplace Relations Commission under section 6 of the Payment of Wages Act, 1991 | CA-00040825-003 | 04/11/2020 |
Complaint seeking adjudication by the Workplace Relations Commission under section 27 of the Organisation of Working Time Act, 1997 | CA-00040825-004 | 04/11/2020 |
Complaint seeking adjudication by the Workplace Relations Commission under section 27 of the Organisation of Working Time Act, 1997 | CA-00040825-005 | 04/11/2020 |
Complaint seeking adjudication by the Workplace Relations Commission under section 7 of the Terms of Employment (Information) Act, 1994 | CA-00040825-006 | 04/11/2020 |
The claimant’s first complaints of non-payment of annual leave and public holidays received on the 4th.Nov. 2020 referred to the monies being due on the 25th.March 2020.The cognizable period for these complaints is the 5th.May to the 4th.November 2020.The claimant did not attend the hearing to advance reasonable cause for the delay in making the complaints. Consequently , these complaints are out of time and I have no jurisdiction to investigate them
Preliminary Matter of Time Limits
Complaint seeking adjudication by the Workplace Relations Commission under section 6 of the Payment of Wages Act, 1991 | CA-00040825-003 | 09/03/2021 |
Complaint seeking adjudication by the Workplace Relations Commission under section 27 of the Organisation of Working Time Act, 1997 | CA-00040825-004 | 09/03/2021 |
Complaint seeking adjudication by the Workplace Relations Commission under section 27 of the Organisation of Working Time Act, 1997 | CA-00040825-005 | 09/03/2021 |
Complaint seeking adjudication by the Workplace Relations Commission under section 7 of the Terms of Employment (Information) Act, 1994 | CA-00040825-006 | 09/03/2021 |
The above complaints were received on the 9th.March 2021 – the claimant’s employment terminated on the 31st.March 2020.The cognizable period for consideration of these complaints is the 10th.September 2020-9th.March 2021.
The claimant did not attend the hearing to advance reasonable cause for the delay in making the complaints. Consequently , these complaints are out of time and I have no jurisdiction to investigate them.
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Dated: 24th September 2021
Workplace Relations Commission Adjudication Officer: Emer O'Shea
Key Words:
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