ADJUDICATION OFFICER DECISION
Adjudication Reference: ADJ-00054504
Parties:
| Complainant | Respondent |
Parties | Paul Compton | Foylevale Limited |
Representatives | Represented himself | Did not attend the hearing |
Complaints:
Act | Complaint Reference No. | Date of Receipt |
Complaint seeking adjudication by the Workplace Relations Commission under Section 39 of the Redundancy Payments Act, 1967 | CA-00066681-001 | 14/10/2024 |
Date of Adjudication Hearing: 10/03/2025
Workplace Relations Commission Adjudication Officer: Catherine Byrne
Procedure:
In accordance with section 39 of the Redundancy Payments Acts 1967 - 2014, this complaint was assigned to me by the Director General. A hearing was arranged for March 10th 2025 at 9.30am, for the parties to have an opportunity to be heard and to present evidence relevant to the complaint. The complainant, Mr Paul Compton, represented himself at the hearing. No one attended to represent his former employer, Foylevale Limited. The case file shows that, on January 10th 2025, a notice of the date and time of the hearing was sent to the registered address of Foylevale Limited and I am satisfied that they were properly on notice. In the absence of any submission from or on behalf of Foylevale Limited, I have reached a decision on this complaint based solely on the evidence of Mr Compton.
Summary of Complainant’s Case:
Mr Compton informed me that Foylevale Limited was a distributor of haberdashery and sewing products. It was based in and managed from Belgium and had contracts with major grocery retailers across Europe. Mr Compton commenced employment with the company on January 1st 2017. When his employment ended, his annual salary was €36,000. In his evidence at the hearing, Mr Compton said that the business ceased trading on July 30th 2024, some months after the death of the founder. Following the closure of the business, Mr Compton said that he tried to contract the company through the office of its accountants, which is also the registered address of the business in Ireland. He said that he has had no success in this regard. He claims that he has been dismissed by Foylevale Limited due to the closure of the business and that he is entitled to a statutory redundancy payment. |
Findings and Conclusions:
Section 7 of the Redundancy Payments Act 1967 sets out five specific circumstances in which an employee may be entitled to a redundancy payment, the first of which is: “(a) the fact his employer has ceased or intends to cease to carry on the business for the purpose of which the employee was employed by him, or has ceased or intends to cease to carry on that business in the place where the employee was so employed[.]” As Mr Compton’s employer has ceased operations in the place where he was employed, his job has become redundant. As he has completed more than two years of service, he is entitled to a redundancy payment. Section 4 of the Minimum Notice and Terms of Employment Act 1973, provides that an employee, such as the complainant, with seven years of service, is entitled to four weeks’ notice from his employer in the event of the termination of his employment. As the complainant received no notice, he is entitled to be paid in lieu of notice. |
Decision:
Section 39 of the Redundancy Payments Acts 1967 – 2012 requires that I make a decision in relation to the complaint in accordance with the relevant redress provisions under that Act.
Subject to his PRSI contribution status, I have decided that Mr Compton is entitled to a statutory redundancy payment based on his service from January 1st 2017 until July 30th 2024 and his weekly pay of €692.30, subject to the statutory ceiling of €600 per week. In accordance with section 4 of the Minimum Notice and Terms of Employment Act 1973, Mr Compton is entitled to four weeks’ notice. I therefore direct the respondent to pay the complainant compensation of €2,770. As this compensation is for a breach of a statutory right, it is not subject to deductions for tax, PRSI or USC. |
Dated: 13-03-2025
Workplace Relations Commission Adjudication Officer: Catherine Byrne
Key Words:
Business closure, redundancy, pay in lieu of notice |