ADJUDICATION OFFICER DECISION
Adjudication Reference: ADJ-00049802
Parties:
| Complainant | Respondent |
Parties | Laura Brown | Anne Marie Dabiri t/a Retro Shop |
Representatives | Self-represented | Self-represented |
Complaints:
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-00061105-001 | 20/01/2024 |
Complaint seeking adjudication by the Workplace Relations Commission under section 7 of the Terms of Employment (Information) Act 1994 | CA-00061105-002 | 20/01/2024 |
Complaint seeking adjudication by the Workplace Relations Commission under section 6 of the Payment of Wages Act 1991 | CA-00061105-003 | 20/01/2024 |
Date of Adjudication Hearing: 16/04/2024
Workplace Relations Commission Adjudication Officer: Kara Turner
Procedure:
On 20 January 2024, Ms Laura Brown (the “complainant”) referred complaints to the Workplace Relations Commission pursuant to the Terms of Employment (Information) Act 1994 and the Payment of Wages Act 1991.
In accordance with section 41 of the Workplace Relations Act 2015, following the referral of the complaints to me by the Director General, I inquired into the complaints and gave the parties an opportunity to be heard by me and to present to me any evidence relevant to the complaints.
A hearing took place in Lansdowne House on 16 April 2024, which was attended by the complainant and Ms Anne Marie Dabiri (the “respondent”).
Both parties expressed a preference for my decision to be anonymised in the interests of the respondent operating as a small business and from a privacy perspective. I have considered the position of the parties and the Commission’s guidelines on the matter of special circumstances, and I am not satisfied that the grounds put forward constitute special circumstances warranting anonymisation of my decision.
I requested that any clarification on the last payments to the complainant in employment be provided within a certain period after the hearing. Documentation received from both parties was exchanged between the parties.
Background:
The complainant worked for the respondent on a part-time basis from August 2023 until 19 January 2024, when her employment was terminated by the respondent due to a downturn in business.
The complaints relate to a written statement of terms of employment and notice of termination. |
Summary of Complainant’s Case:
The complainant commenced working on a part-time basis in the respondent’s shop in August 2023. Specific information regarding the rate of pay, pay frequency and weekly working hours were provided orally and by way of email and messages between the complainant and shop manager. The complainant was not provided with a written statement of the core terms of her employment within 5 days of commencing employment and did not receive a written statement in accordance with section 3 of the Terms of Employment (Information) Act 1994. The complainant attended for work on 19 January 2024 and was informed by the respondent shortly after her shift commenced that the respondent would have to let her go due to a downturn in business. The complainant was let go immediately, with no notice or payment in lieu of notice. The respondent did not require the complainant to remain on to finish her shift on 19 January 2024. |
Summary of Respondent’s Case:
The complainant worked for the respondent for a very short period of time. In January 2024, there was a significant downturn in business, this was directly after the Christmas period. In the circumstances, the respondent terminated the complainant’s employment. The complainant was not given notice of termination. It had been the respondent’s understanding that the shop manager gave the complainant a written statement of terms of employment. |
Findings and Conclusions:
I have fully reviewed the documentation before me and considered the submissions of the parties at the hearing. The material facts were not in dispute between the parties. In relation to the complainant’s remuneration, the complainant’s weekly hours of work varied and included compensation for Sunday work. CA-00061105-001 The complaint presented to the Commission was that the complainant was not provided with a written statement of the terms of her employment. The respondent was required by section 3(1) of the Terms of Employment (Information) Act 1994 (the “1994 Act”) to provide the complainant with a statement in writing concerning certain particulars of the complainant’s terms and conditions of employment within 1 month of the complainant commencing employment. I find that section 3(1) of the 1994 Act was contravened by the respondent. I find this complaint to be well founded and order the respondent pay to the complainant compensation of €430.00, equivalent to approximately 2 weeks’ remuneration calculated in accordance with regulations 3 and 4 of S.I. 287 of 1977, which I consider just and equitable having regard to all the circumstances. CA-00061105-002 This is a complaint that the respondent failed to provide the complainant with a statement of her core terms of employment. Section 3(1A) of the 1994 Act requires an employer to provide an employee with a written statement of the particulars of certain core terms of the employee’s employment not later than 5 days after the commencement of the employee’s employment. I find that section 3(1A) of the 1994 Act was contravened by the respondent. I find the complaint is well founded and order the respondent pay to the complainant compensation of €215.00, equivalent to approximately 1 week’s remuneration, which I consider just and equitable having regard to all the circumstances. CA-00061105-003 The complainant was not given notice of the termination of her employment, or a payment in lieu of notice. The complainant submitted that her last two payslips from employment related to payments for hours worked and accrued annual leave. This was not disputed by the respondent. Section 1 of the Payment of Wages Act 1991 defines wages as meaning:- “… any sums payable to the employee by the employer in connection with his employment, including— (a) any fee, bonus or commission, or any holiday, sick or maternity pay, or any other emolument, referable to his employment, whether payable under his contract of employment or otherwise, and (b) any sum payable to the employee upon the termination by the employer of his contract of employment without his having given to the employee the appropriate prior notice of the termination, being a sum paid in lieu of the giving of such notice: Provided however that the following payments shall not be regarded as wages for the purposes of this definition:
(i) any payment in respect of expenses incurred by the employee in carrying out his employment, (ii) any payment by way of a pension, allowance or gratuity in connection with the death, or the retirement or resignation from his employment, of the employee or as compensation for loss of office, (iii) any payment referable to the employee's redundancy, (iv) any payment to the employee otherwise than in his capacity as an employee, (v) any payment in kind or benefit in kind, (vi) any payment by way of tips and gratuities.”
In accordance with the Minimum Notice & Terms of Employment Act 1973, the complainant was entitled to one week’s notice of termination of employment. I find that one week’s wages were payable to the complainant in circumstances where she was not given the appropriate prior notice of termination.
I therefore find in accordance with section 6 of the 1991 Act that the complaint of a contravention of section 5 is well-founded and I direct the respondent pay to the complainant compensation of €63.50 which I consider reasonable in the circumstances, and in particular the reduced hours of work in January 2024. |
Decision:
Section 41 of the Workplace Relations Act 2015 requires that I make a decision in relation to the complaints in accordance with the relevant redress provisions under Schedule 6 of that Act.
CA-00061105-001 I find that the complaint of a contravention of section 3(1) of the Terms of Employment (Information) Act 1994 Act is well founded and order the respondent pay to the complainant compensation of €430.00, which I consider just and equitable having regard to all the circumstances. CA-00061105-002 I find that the complaint of a contravention of section 3(1A) of the Terms of Employment (Information) Act 1994 is well founded and order the respondent pay to the complainant compensation of €215.00, which I consider just and equitable having regard to all the circumstances. CA-00061105-003 I find that the complaint of a contravention of section 5 of the Payment of Wages Act 1991 is well founded and direct the respondent pay to the complainant compensation of €63.50 which I consider reasonable in the circumstances. |
Dated: 02-05-24
Workplace Relations Commission Adjudication Officer: Kara Turner
Key Words:
Statement of terms of employment – Core terms – Minimum notice – Payment in lieu |