ADJUDICATION OFFICER DECISION
Adjudication Reference: ADJ-00043185
Parties:
| Complainant | Respondent |
Parties | Isadora Furlanetto | Temple Bar Shops Limited |
| Complainant | Respondent |
Parties | Isadora Furlanetto | Temple Bar Shops Limited |
Representatives | John Cahill Citizens Information Service | No show |
Complaint(s):
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-00053851-001 | 24/11/2022 |
Date of Adjudication Hearing: 14/06/2023
Workplace Relations Commission Adjudication Officer: Brian Dalton
Procedure:
In accordance with Section 41 of the Workplace Relations Act, 2015 following the referral of the complaint(s)to me by the Director General, I inquired into the complaint(s) and gave the parties an opportunity to be heard by me and to present to me any evidence relevant to the complaint(s).
The Complainant gave sworn evidence.
Background:
The Complainant worked for the Respondent restaurant as a waitress, between the following dates: 1. 2nd of June 2022 to the 4th of June 2022 2. 5 hours trial the first day 3. 6 hours on the 3rd and 4th of June 2022 4. Hourly Rate €8.40
She left her employment as she was successful in obtaining another job close to home.
Her employer has allegedly stated that she owed him money for her uniform, and she failed to give notice as required under her contract of employment.
The Respondent failed to attend at the hearing.
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Summary of Complainant’s Case:
The Complaint is for unlawful withholding of €142.80 which equates to 17 hours x €8.40 an amount properly payable arising from work completed at the Restaurant. The Complainant had not signed any contract and in any event the Minimum Notice and Terms of Employment Act 1973 as amended provides for the following only: Right of employer to notice. 6.—An employer shall, subject to the right of an employee to give counter-notice under section 10 of the Act of 1967 or to give notice of intention to claim redundancy payment in respect of lay-off or short-time under section 12 of that Act, be entitled to not less than one week’s notice from an employee who has been in his continuous employment for thirteen weeks or more of that employee’s intention to terminate his contract of employment. As the Complainant has less than 13 weeks of service the right to notice to the Employer does not apply in this case. The amount as detailed is properly payable and is being withheld unlawfully by the employer.
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Summary of Respondent’s Case:
I am satisfied that the Respondent was notified of the time and place of the hearing and failed to attend either in person or remotely. In these circumstances and having regard to the sworn evidence of the Complainant I must determine that that Respondent has been provided with the opportunity to rebut the complaint made against them and has failed to do so. |
Findings and Conclusions:
The Payment of Wages Act 1991 provides for the following: [6. (1) A decision of an adjudication officer under section 41 of the Workplace Relations Act 2015, in relation to a complaint of a contravention of[section 4C or ] as respects a deduction made by an employer from the wages or tips or gratuities] of an employee or the receipt from an employee by an employer of a payment, that the complaint is, in whole or in part, well founded as respects the deduction or payment shall include a direction to the employer to pay to the employee compensation of such amount (if any) as he considers reasonable in the circumstances not exceeding— (a) the net amount of the wages, or tip or gratuity as the case may be] (after the making of any lawful deduction therefrom) that— On the sworn evidence by the Complainant, I determine that the Respondent unlawfully withheld wages from her arising from the fact that b) none of the wages that are properly payable to an employee by an employer on any occasion (after making any such deductions as aforesaid) are paid to the employee, I find that the Complaint is well founded and direct that the Respondent pay to the Complainant compensation of €142.80 less any statutory deductions. |
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.
On the sworn evidence by the Complainant, I determine that the Respondent unlawfully withheld wages from her arising from the fact that b) none of the wages that are properly payable to an employee by an employer on any occasion (after making any such deductions as aforesaid) are paid to the employee, The Complaint is well founded. I find that the Complaint is well founded and direct that the Respondent pay to the Complainant compensation of €142.80 less any statutory deductions |
Dated: 17-07-2023
Workplace Relations Commission Adjudication Officer: Brian Dalton
Key Words:
Unlawful withholding of wages |