ADJUDICATION OFFICER DECISION

Adjudication Reference: ADJ-00046319

Parties:

	Complainant	Respondent
Parties	Kyle Muldoon	Eastwood Hospitality Limited trading as The Wishing Well

	Complainant	Respondent
Anonymised Parties	{text}	{text}

Representatives

In Person

No Appearance

Complaint(s):

Act	Complaint/Dispute Reference No.	Date of Receipt
Complaint seeking adjudication by the Workplace Relations Commission under section 6 of the Payment of Wages Act, 1991	CA-00057254-001	20/06/2023

Date of Adjudication Hearing: 25/09/2023 (remote)

Workplace Relations Commission Adjudication Officer: Emile Daly

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:

The Complaint is that after the Respondent business shut down on 22 March 2023 outstanding wages were owed to the Complainant.

Summary of Complainant’s Case:

Under affirmation the Complainant gave the following evidence:

The Complainant worked as a waiter in the Respondent bar and restaurant business from 10 December 2022.

The Respondent business ceased operating on 22 March 2023 leaving the Complainant unpaid wages in the sum of €214.65.

The Complainant emailed the owner of the Respondent business on 29 March 2023 asserting that he was owed outstanding wages. The owner accepted this and said that the debt would be discharged when the books were balanced, he congratulated the Complainant on his work and wished him luck.

The monies to the Complainant were never paid and the Complainant issued a WRC complaint on 20 June 2023.

Summary of Respondent’s Case:

There was no appearance on or on behalf of the Respondent at the remote Adjudication hearing on 25 September 2023.

Findings and Conclusions:

There was no appearance by the Respondent at the Adjudication hearing before which this Adjudicator took steps to confirm the following:

The Respondent was on proper notice of the Adjudication hearing.

WRC staff made several attempts, to contact the Respondent by email and by voice messages in the week prior to the hearing to confirm the Respondent’s attendance or otherwise, but there was no response.

As the Adjudicator was satisfied that the Respondent had been given the opportunity to attend the Adjudication hearing on 25 September 2023 and chose not to do so, the Adjudication proceeded on the basis of the Complainant’s evidence alone.

Finding

Based on the uncontested evidence of the Complainant I am satisfied that wages in the sum of €214.65 was unlawfully deducted from the Complainant by the Respondent in breach of the provisions of the Payment of Wages Act 1991, as amended.

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.

This complaint is well founded. I direct that the Respondent pay to the Complainant the sum of €214.65.

Dated: 26th September 2023

Workplace Relations Commission Adjudication Officer: Emile Daly

Key Words:

Payment of Wages – business closed