DWT2511

PARTIES:

DIVISION:

SUBJECT:

Appeal of Adjudication Officer Decision No's: ADJ-00049778 (CA-00060984-002)

BACKGROUND:

The Worker appealed the Adjudication Officer's Decision to the Labour Court on 18 September 2024. A Labour Court Hearing took place on the 12 March 2025.

The following is the Labour Court's Decision.

DECISION:

Background to the Appeal

This is an appeal by Mr Tomás English (‘the Complainant’) from a decision of an Adjudication Officer (ADJ-00049778/CA-00060984-002, dated 12 August 2024) under the Organisation of Working Time Act 1997(‘the Act’). The Adjudication Officer decided that the claim was “misconceived, out of time and not well-founded”. Notice of the Appeal was received in the Court on 18 September 2024. The Court heard the appeal in Waterford on 12 March 2025.

Preliminary Issue

At the outset of the within hearing, Mr Paul Gough, Solicitor for Respond (‘the Respondent’) submitted that the Complainant’s claim was time barred having regard to section 41(6) of the Workplace Relations Act 2015. The Complainant submitted that his claim should not be found to be time barred as he referred it to the Workplace Relations Commission promptly having exhausted the Respondent’s internal procedures.

The Law

Section 41(6) of the Workplace Relations Act 2015 provides:

“(6) Subject to subsection (8), an adjudication officer shall not entertain a complaint referred to him or her under this section if it has been presented to the Director General after the expiration of the period of 6 months beginning on the date of the contravention to which the complaint relates.”

Discussion and Decision

It is common case that the within claim relates to untaken annual leave which the Complainant submits was carried forward by agreement with the Respondent in 2021 and 2022.

The complaint under the Act was referred to the Workplace Relations Commission on 14 January 2024. It follows, therefore, that the period comprehended by the complaint is 15 July 2023 to 14 January 2024. Having regard to section 41(6) of the Act of 2015 referred to earlier, the Court finds that the complaint is statute barred. The appeal, accordingly, fails and the decision of the Adjudication Officer is affirmed.

The Court so decides.

	Signed on behalf of the Labour Court
	Alan Haugh
AR	______________________
4th April 2025	Deputy Chairman

NOTE

Enquiries concerning this Decision should be addressed to Aidan Ralph, Court Secretary.