ADJUDICATION OFFICER DECISION

Adjudication Reference: ADJ-00052122

Parties:

	Complainant	Respondent
Parties	Sam Ali	Vector Workplace & Facility Management Ltd

Representatives

Aleksandra Tiilikainen IBEC

Complaint:

Act	Complaint/Dispute Reference No.	Date of Receipt
Complaint seeking adjudication by the Workplace Relations Commission under section 27 of the Organisation of Working Time Act, 1997	CA-00063841-001	30/05/2024

Date of Adjudication Hearing: 23/09/2024

Workplace Relations Commission Adjudication Officer: Penelope McGrath

Procedure:

In accordance with Section 41(4) of the Workplace Relations Act, 2015 and following the presentation by an employee of a complaint of a contravention by an employer of an Act contained in Schedule 5 of the Workplace Relations Act of 2015, made to the Director General and following a referral by the said Director General of this matter to the Adjudication services, I can confirm that I have fulfilled my obligation to make all relevant inquiries into the complaint or complaints. I have additionally and where appropriate heard the oral evidence of the parties and their witnesses and have taken account of the evidence tendered.

In particular, the Complainant herein has referred one complaint:

The Complaint herein relates to a contravention of The Organisation of Working Time Act 1997 and in particular to a contravention under Section 19 of the Act which sets out those circumstances which give rise to annual leave entitlements. So that an Employee becomes entitled to Annual leave equal to:

4 weeks in a leave year in which the Employee has worked 1365 hours or more.

1/3 of a working week in each month that the Employee has worked in excess of 177 hours.

8% of the hours worked up to 4 working weeks.

Pursuant to Section 27 of the Organisation of Working Time Act 1997 (as amended), a decision of an adjudication officer as provided for under Section 41 of the Workplace Relations Act shall do one or more of the following:

(i) Declare the complaint was or was not well founded.
(ii) Require the Employer to comply with the relevant provision.
(iii) Require the employer to pay to the employee compensation of such amount as is just and equitable having regard to all the circumstances but not exceeding 2 years remuneration.

The Adjudication Officer must be aware of applicable time limits and in this regard, the Workplace Relations Act specifies at Section 41 (6) that (subject to s.s.8) an Adjudication Officer shall not entertain a complaint referred to said Adjudication Officer after the expiration of the period of six months beginning on the date of the contravention to which the Complaint relates.

Background:

This hearing was to be conducted in person in the Workplace Relations Commission situate in Lansdowne Road, Dublin. In line with the Supreme Court decision in the constitutional case of Zalewski -v- An Adjudication Officer and the Workplace Relations Commission and Ireland and the Attorney General [2021] IESC 24 (delivered on the 6th of April 2021) the hearing was to be conducted in recognition of the fact that the proceedings constitute the administration of Justice. It was therefore open to members of the public to attend this hearing.

Had evidence been given it would have been in compliance with the Workplace Relations (Miscellaneous Provisions) Act, 2021 which came intoeffecton the 29th of July 2021, and which said legislation accommodates situations where there is the potential for a serious and direct conflict in the evidence between the parties to a complaint. In such circumstances, an oath or an affirmation may be required to be administered to any person giving evidence before me. It is noted that the giving of false statements or evidence is an offence.

The Complaint herein was brought to the attention of the WRC on the 30th of May 2024 by way of a workplace relations complaint form.

Summary of Complainant’s Case:

The Complainant did not attend. I am satisfied that the Complainant was notified of the date, time and venue for this hearing by a letter sent from the WRC - dated the 25th of July 2024 - and emailed to the email address provided by the Complainant on the workplace relations complaint form.

From the Complaint form provided, I have discerned that the Complainant sought to establish he was owed holiday or annual leave payment.

I understand that the Respondent intended defending the within complaint.

Summary of Respondent’s Case:

The Respondent attended with IBEC representation. The Respondent HR Business partner was also in attendance to represent the entity.

I have received a submission from the Respondent as of the 28th of August 2023 and I appreciate the considerable effort made by the Respondent to meet the case.

The Respondent was defending this claim in full

Findings and Conclusions:

The Complainant did not attend to make his case, and I cannot therefore make any findings of fact or otherwise.

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.

Complaint seeking adjudication by the Workplace Relations Commission under section 27 of the Organisation of Working Time Act, 1997

CA-00063841-001 – The Complaint herein is not well founded in circumstances where the Complainant did not attend to make his case. The Complaint fails.

Dated: 14-01-2025

Workplace Relations Commission Adjudication Officer: Penelope McGrath

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