FULL RECOMMENDATION
MINIMUM NOTICE AND TERMS OF EMPLOYMENT ACTS, 1973 TO 2005 PARTIES: ROADBRIDGE CIVIL ENGINEERING & BUILDING CONTRACTORS ROADBRIDGE LTD - AND - JAMES CUFFE (REPRESENTED BY SERVICES INDUSTRIAL PROFESSIONAL TECHNICAL UNION) DIVISION:
SUBJECT: 1.Appeal of Adjudication Officer Decision No(s) ADJ-00039895 CA-00052161-002. DETERMINATION: Mr. Cuffe, ‘the Complainant’ worked for Roadbridge Ltd., ‘the Respondent’ since 2011. The company went into receivership and Mr. Cuffe was made redundant on 28 April 2022. On 27 August 2020, the Complainant had been transferred to the UK. He was paid statutory redundancy under UK legislation. This amounted to less than his entitlement under the Redundancy Payments Act 1967 applicable in this jurisdiction. Further, the notice pay received by him was less than his entitlement under the Minimum Notice and Terms of Employment Acts 1973 to 2005, ‘the Acts’. The Complainant lodged a complaint under the Acts seeking payment of the balance of notice pay. The Complainant failed to attend at the Workplace Relations Commission, ‘WRC’, hearing and the case was decided by an Adjudication Officer, ‘AO’, not to be well founded. The requisite €300 was lodged with this Court with an appeal. There was no representative of the Respondent or the Receiver present at the Court hearing. The Court is satisfied that adequate attempts were made to ensure that the Respondent was aware of the hearing. In a parallel case involving the same parties, the Court determined that the Complainant was entitled to coverage of the Redundancy Payments Act 1967 applicable in this jurisdiction. The reasoning of the Court is set out in that Determination and it is not necessary to repeat it here. Having determined that the Complainant is covered by Irish law, it follows that he is covered by the Acts and the sole matter requiring action by the Court in the instant case is to direct that any balance due to the Complainant be paid to him. The applicable provision in the Acts reads as follows; Minimum period of notice. 4.—(1) An employer shall, in order to terminate the contract of employment of an employee who has been in his continuous service for a period of thirteen weeks or more, give to that employee a minimum period of notice calculated in accordance with the provisions of subsection (2) of this section. (2) The minimum notice to be given by an employer to terminate the contract of employment of his employee shall be— (a) if the employee has been in the continuous service of his employer for less than two years, one week, (b) if the employee has been in the continuous service of his employer for two years or more, but less than five years, two weeks, (c) if the employee has been in the continuous service of his employer for five years or more, but less than ten years, four weeks, (d) if the employee has been in the continuous service of his employer for ten years or more, but less than fifteen years, six weeks, (e) if the employee has been in the continuous service of his employer for fifteen years or more, eight weeks. According to the information provided by the Complainant’s representative, the Complainant was paid £3951.80 or €4606.83 by the UK authorities. His entitlement under the Acts is 6 weeks’ pay or €7,500, leaving a balance due of €2893.17. The Court determines that this amount be paid to the Complainant, subject to any necessary changes due to currency fluctuation. Determination. The Decision of the Adjudication Officer is set aside.
NOTE Enquiries concerning this Determination should be addressed to Therese Hickey, Court Secretary. |
