ADJUDICATION OFFICER DECISION

Adjudication Reference: ADJ-00039878

Parties:

	Complainant	Respondent
Parties	Tara O'Donoghue	Chris Mee & Associates Ltd. T/A Chris Mee Group

Representatives

Self-represented

Self-represented/Internal

Complaint:

Act	Complaint Reference No.	Date of Receipt
Complaint seeking adjudication by the Workplace Relations Commission under section 7 of the Terms of Employment (Information) Act, 1994	CA-00051672-002	08/07/2022

Date of Adjudication Hearing: 27/04/2023

Workplace Relations Commission Adjudication Officer: Lefre de Burgh

Procedure:

In accordance with Section 41 of the Workplace Relations Act, 2015,following the referral of the complaint to me by the Director General, I inquired into the complaint and gave the parties an opportunity to be heard by me and to present to me any evidence relevant to the complaint.

Background:

It was common case that the Complainant had not received her contract, in time, as required by the applicable legislation.

Summary of Complainant’s Case:

The Complainant submitted that she did not receive a contract within the prescribed time-frame required – she submitted that she did not receive her contract or terms of employment for 50 days and that the impact on her was significant in terms of the specifics of her job role and not having sight of the process for raising a grievance. The Complainant’s annual salary was €28,000.

Summary of Respondent’s Case:

The Respondent conceded the claim that the Complainant had not received her contract, in time, as required by the applicable legislation. The Respondent submitted that it was an oversight, that there was a gap in their HR department – a new HR Administrator had started - at the time, and that it had not followed its own processes in this regard, but did submit that the Complainant received a comprehensive contract (and terms of employment) within a few weeks of starting work, once the oversight came to light, albeit later than should have occurred or would ordinarily occur within the company.

Findings and Conclusions:

It was common case that the Complainant had not received her contract (or terms of employment), in time, as prescribed by the applicable legislation.

The company submitted that it was an oversight due to a gap in its HR department at the time, and that the Complainant did in fact receive a comprehensive contract shortly thereafter.

The Complainant emphasised the impact on her and submitted that the breach was a significant one.

It therefore falls to me to determine quantum.

The maximum jurisdiction under the legislation is four weeks’ wages.

Decision:

Section 41 of the Workplace Relations Act 2015 requires that I make a decision in relation to the complaint in accordance with the relevant redress provisions under Schedule 6 of that Act.

I award the Complainant the equivalent of two weeks’ wages compensation in the amount of €1,078 in relation to the breach and direct that it be paid by the Respondent to the Complainant within 42 days of the date of this decision.

Dated: 04/August/2023

Workplace Relations Commission Adjudication Officer: Lefre de Burgh

Key Words:

Late Receipt of Contract; Terms of Employment; Breach;