Complainant

Respondent

Parties

Ailish  Browne

Kellsgrange Residential Services Ltd

Representatives

 Self-Represented

 No Appearance

Act

Complaint Reference No.

Date of Receipt

Complaint seeking adjudication by the Workplace Relations Commission under section 6 of the Payment of Wages Act, 1991

CA-00044313-001

24/05/2021

The Complainant commenced employment with the Respondent on 6th July 2020. The Complainant’s employment was terminated by way on resignation on 14th December 2020. On 24th May 2021, the Complainant lodged the present complaint with the Commission. Herein, the Complainant alleged that she suffered an unlawful deduction from her final payment of wages.

A hearing in relation to this matter was convened and finalised on 9th August 2021. This This hearing was conducted by way of remote hearing pursuant to the Civil Law and Criminal Law (Miscellaneous Provisions) Act 2020 and SI 359/20206, which designates the WRC as a body empowered to hold remote hearings. No technical issues were experienced during the hearing. No issues as to my jurisdiction to hear the complaint were raised at any stage of the proceedings.

The Complainant commenced employment as a social worker with the Respondent on 6th July 2020. On 16th December 2020, the Complainant gave notice of her intention to terminate the contract of employment. The following day her line manager informed her that she would have to repay a fee paid by the Respondent for training completed by the Complainant a few months previous.

The Complainant stated that she was never informed of the cost of this training, never signed any documentation related to the outlay and was unaware on any contractual term governing such repayments. The Complainant raised this issue directly with her line manager and informed her that she did not consent to the deduction from her wages. Notwithstanding the same, the Respondent proceeded to deduct the sum of €705.00 from her final wages.

The Respondent did not attend the hearing, nor did they issue any written submission or defence to the claim.

Having reviewed the file, I am assured that the Respondent was on notice of the initial complaint and the date of hearing. In the circumstances the matter proceeded in the absence of the Respondent and on the basis of the Complainant’s uncontested evidence.

Section 5(1) of the Payment of Wages Act sets out the following prescriptive steps in order for a deduction from wages to be deemed lawful;

“An employer shall not make a deduction from the wages of an employee (or receive any payment from an employee) unless –

(a)    The deduction (or payment) is required or authorised to be made by virtue of any statute or any instrument made under statute,

(b)    The deduction (or payment) is required or authorised to be made by virtue of a term of the employee’s contract of employment included in the contract before, and in force at the time of, the deduction or payment, or

(c)     In the case of a deduction, the employee has given his prior consent in writing to it.”

In the present case it is clear that these prescriptive steps were not followed by the Respondent. As a consequence I find that the deduction of €705.00 from the Complainant’s final payment of wages to be an unlawful deduction for the purposes of the Act.

I find that the Respondent is in breach of the Act and the Complainant’s complaint is well-found.

In relation to redress, Section 6(2) of the Act (as amended) empowers me to award such redress as deemed reasonable in the circumstances, so long as the same does not exceed the amount owed.

Having regard to all he circumstances of the matter, I award the Complainant the sum of €705.00 in compensation. This sum is to be subject to all normal deductions as income.

Non-attendance, final deduction, prescriptive steps.