This case is an appeal brought by PMPD Foods, t/a Toffee n Thyme against the decision of the Adjudication Officer that awarded Mr Ken Banville compensation in the sum of €3,467.81 for unpaid sick leave and unpaid annual leave entitlements. The Complainant submitted that he was on certified sick leave from the 28th of August 2017 until he resigned on the 30th of November 2018. He was not aware that the Respondent was not in receipt of his medical certification until the hearing before the Adjudication Officer. Following on from that hearing as directed by the Adjudication Officer, he provided the Respondent with a letter from his Doctor confirming that he had been on certified sick leave for the period in question.

The Respondent confirmed to the Court that following the Adjudication Officer’s hearing it had received a letter on headed paper from the Complainant’s GP confirming that the Complainant had been on certified sick leave for the period in question. The Respondent did not submit a copy of that correspondence nor was it made available to the Court on the day of the hearing. The Respondent sought clarification from the GP and had sought access to the Complainant’s medical files but had not received a response from the Complainant’s GP.

The question for the Court to decide was whether the absence was a certified absence due to illness and whether the Complainant provided a registered medical certificate to the Respondent in respect of that illness. On the day of the hearing neither party opted to go into evidence and therefore the case was heard on the basis of submissions by both parties. It is not disputed by the Respondent that it received medical certificates in the initial period. The Court commented that it was not clear why the Respondent would not have at that time raised with the Complainant the fact that it had not received medical certificates covering the relevant period. The Court concluded that on the balance of probabilities, medical certificates were provided to the employer in respect of the illness.

The Court determined that the complaint in respect of public holidays must fail as it relates to a period of time outside of the reckonable period.  However, in respect of the annual leave claim, the court determined that the Complainant should be paid the sum of €2,602.48 in respect of accrued annual leave.
https://www.workplacerelations.ie/en/cases/2020/december/pwd2037.html