Paul D Maier is a barrister specialising in the law of work, labour, and employment. Based in Dublin, Ireland, he is a member of the Law Library, having been called to the Bar in 2022.
Paul represents both employers and employees at all levels of the Courts, as well as before the Labour Court and the Workplace Relations Commission. He is a qualified arbitrator and is frequently commissioned to lead independent investigations and disciplinary procedures for organisations. Additionally, he is regularly engaged to provide legal advice and opinions on employment law and related matters.
Paul serves as the Editor of the Irish Employment Law Journal and Employment Law Report, and he is the Treasurer of the Employment Bar Association.
Summary Sentence:
The Complainant was successful in showing that she had not received a proper written contract and was awarded four weeks’ wages worth over €2,000.
Background:
The Complainant worked for the Respondent organisation as an administrator from 18 July 2022 to 13 February 2023. During this time, the Complainant says she did not receive a contract of employment until she was five months into her role, and that this contract did not provide for all the matters required under law. The Complainant said she asked for this contract on a number of occasions by email and in-person. Due to these failures, the Complainant made three different complaints: (1) that she did not receive a statement of her terms and conditions of employment within the time required by law, (2) that she did not receive a “five day notice” of her core terms of employment as required by law, and (3) that her terms and conditions of employment were unilaterally changed in the course of her employment without the process required by law.
The Respondent did not attend the hearing and so the Complainant’s evidence was uncontroverted.
Outcome:
The Adjudication Officer,given uncontroverted evidence and in light of the obligation to prove compliance on the Respondent, found the Complainant’s complaints well-founded and awarded her a total of four weeks’ pay at the rate of €538.47 per week.
Practical Guidance for Employers:
A failure to do the simple things, like provide a written contract of employment, can lead to unnecessary and preventable exposure to legal risk, even if no harm can be shown arising from that failure.
The full case is here:
https://www.workplacerelations.ie/en/cases/2024/april/adj-00047367.html
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