Complainant

Respondent

Parties

Ikenna  Uzokwe

Bgs Security Limited

Representatives

  Self-Represented

No Appearance

Act

Complaint/Dispute Reference No.

Date of Receipt

Complaint seeking adjudication by the Workplace Relations Commission under section 6 of the Payment of Wages Act 1991

CA-00065009-002

16/08/2024

The Complainant worked for the Respondent as a Security Officer from the 22nd May 2024 until the end of July 2024. He earned €12.90 per hour. The Complainant did not receive the wages set out on his payslips for the months of June 2024 and July 2024.

The Complainant stated in evidence that he was employed as a Security Officer. He earned €12.90 per hour. The Complainant was issued with a payslip for Pay Period 6 which stated that his wages would be paid to him by Cheque on the 30th June 2024 however he was not paid his wages. He was issued with a payslip for Pay Period 7 which stated that his wages would be paid to him by Cheque on the 31st July 2024 however he was not paid the wages.

The Complainant confirmed that the wages set out on his payslips for Pay Period 6, namely €2,918.90 gross and Pay Period 7, namely €2,045.90 gross remained outstanding as at the date of the hearing.

The Respondent did not attend the scheduled hearing of this complaint. Having carefully reviewed the file I am satisfied that the Respondent was on notice of the claim against it and the hearing date, time and venue. I waited a reasonable time before proceeding with the hearing in the absence of the Respondent.

In making these findings, I have considered the documentation submitted by the parties and the oral evidence adduced at the hearings summarised above.

The complaint referred to the WRC is that the Respondent unlawfully deducted wages due to the Complainant set out on his payslip for Pay Periods 6 and 7.  

Relevant Law:

Payment of Wages Act 1991

The Payment of Wages Act 1991 (hereinafter referred to as “the 1991 Act”) provides the following definition of “wages” at section 1:

"wages", in relation to an employee, means 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 or gratuities.

Sections 5(1) and 5(6) of the 1991 Act provides:

5(1) An employer shall not make a deduction from the wages of an employee (or receive any payment from an employee) unless—

(a) the deduction (or payment) is required or authorised to be made by virtue of any statute or any instrument made under statute,

(b) the deduction (or payment) is required or authorised to be made by virtue of a term of the employee's contract of employment included in the contract before, and in force at the time of, the deduction or payment, or

(c) in the case of a deduction, the employee has given his prior consent in writing to it.

(2) …

(3) …

(4) …

(5) …

(6) Where—

(a) the total amount of any wages that are paid on any occasion by an employer to an employee is less than the total amount of wages that is properly payable by him to the employee on that occasion (after making any deductions therefrom that fall to be made and are in accordance with this Act), or

(b) none of the wages that are properly payable to an employee by an employer on any occasion (after making any such deductions as aforesaid) are paid to the employee,

then, except in so far as the deficiency or non-payment is attributable to an error of computation, the amount of the deficiency or non-payment shall be treated as a deduction made by the employer from the wages of the employee on the occasion.

The non-payment of wages that are properly payable to an employee is therefore an unlawful deduction by the employer.  The question to be decided is whether the wages claimed were properly payable.

The Complainant gave evidence that he commenced employment with the Respondent on the 22nd May 2024 as a Security Officer and that he earned €12.90 per hour. His employment ended at the end of July 2024.

The Complainant received a payslip for Pay Period 6 / June 2024 which stated that his gross wages of €2,918.90 would be paid by Cheque on the 30th June 2024. The Complainant confirmed that the payslip reflected the hours worked by him but that his wages were not paid to him. He contacted his manager who informed him that there was going to be a change to the payment method and that his wages would be paid on the 19th July 2024 however no payment was made. On the 20th July 2024 the Complainant was informed that payment would be made the following Tuesday but again the Complainant’s wages for Pay Period 6 / June 2024 were not paid.

The Complainant received a payslip for Pay Period 7 /July 2024 which stated that his gross wages of €2,045.90 would be paid by Cheque on the 31st July 2024. The Complainant confirmed that the payslip reflected the hours worked by him but that his wages were not paid to him. He made numerous attempts to contact his employer regarding his outstanding wages however his calls went unanswered.

The Complainant was a credible witness, providing additional detail as required by the Adjudication Officer and supporting his contentions with documentation where possible.  I am satisfied that the Complainant was not paid the wages that were properly payable to him. The Complainant was not paid the wages set out on his payslips for Pay Period 6/June 2024 (€2,918.90 gross) and Pay Period 7/July 2024 (€2,045.90 gross). I am satisfied that the Complainant has established his claim to the total gross wages of €4,964.80 under the Payment of Wages Act 1991. I find that the Respondent deducted this amount unlawfully and that the Complainant is entitled to payment of compensation of €4,964.80 less any lawful deductions. I consider this to be reasonable in the circumstances.

Having regard to the written and oral evidence in relation to this complaint, my decision is that the complaint is well founded and I direct the Respondent pay the Complainant compensation of €4,964.80 less any lawful deductions.