Complainant

Respondent

Parties

Sarah  Fahy

Limerick Clare Education & Training Board

Representatives

Self-Represented

Ms. Muireann McEnery, IBEC

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-00055206-001

21/02/2023

The Complainant commenced employment with the Respondent on 25th November 2020. The Complainant received an average weekly payment of €135.39. The Complainant’s employment terminated on 2nd September 2022.

On 21st September 2023, the Complainant referred the present complaint to the Commission. Herein, she alleged that that she did not receive a statement of terms of employment and set out, in detail, the difficulties this caused her in the course of her employment. By subsequent submission, the Respondent accepted that the Complainant did not receive a written statement of terms of employment and conceded the complaint.

A hearing in relation to this matter was convened for, and finalised on, 21st November 2023. 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 by either party in the course of the hearing.

By submission, the Complainant stated that she did not receive a contract in the course of her employment. She submitted that the Respondent’s failures in this regard created a situation whereby she was paid incorrectly for periods of time and had to continually revert to the Respondent regarding her job title, various employment rights and allowances. In addition to the foregoing, the Complainant alleged adverse treatment on the part of the Respondent, particularly in the proposed scheduling of her hours towards the end of her employment.  

By response, the Respondent accepted that the Complainant did not receive a statement of terms of employment in accordance with the relevant legislation.

Section 3(1) of the Act (as amended) provides that,

“An employer shall, not later than 2 months after the commencement of an employee’s employment with the employer, give or cause to be given to the employee a statement in writing containing the following particulars of the terms of the employee’s employment”

In this regard, the Respondent has accepted that the Complainant did not receive a statement of terms in accordance with this provisions. As a consequence of the same, the complaint is well-founded and the Complainant’s application succeeds.

While the Complainant raised other issues regarding adverse treatment by the Respondent, the impleaded legislation permits me to make a determination in relation to the provision of a statement of terms, with the enforcement of the same falling outside the remit of the hearing. 

I find that the complaint is well-founded, and consequently the Complainant’s application succeeds.

Section 7 of the Act (as amended) empowers me to award compensation not exceeding four weeks’ remuneration in respect of breach of the Act. Having regard to the totality of the evidence presented, I award the Complainant the sum of €541.56, the maximum permissible award under the impleaded legislation.

Terms of Employment, Enforcement