WRC Annual Report 2024

The WRC has recently released its annual report on cases from 2024. This is a useful tool to examine emerging trends in cases being brought to the WRC and the types of issues that are arising. Notably, in 2024, the WRC reported a massive increase in cases being brought, with an 18% increase in complaints in comparison to the previous year. This is likely due to the introduction of the eComplaint form in September 2024, which makes it very accessible for employees to bring a complaint. 27% of these cases related to pay issues, 15% to unfair dismissals and 14% to discrimination, equality and equal status. The report also highlights just how useful pre-adjudication mediation can be, with a 56% resolution rate at that stage.

For further information on the WRC’s annual report, please visit our article here.

Gender Pay Gap Reporting Updates

Following the introduction of Gender Pay Gap (“GPG”) reporting in Ireland, the government issued a helpful online FAQ document which they have updated on a number of occasions, to assist employers with questions that they may have going through the process. The government has recently updated the FAQ document as well as its guidance note on how to calculate GPG metrics for the purpose of fulfilling reporting obligations. This is particularly helpful in light of recent changes to the regime, such as the change to the reporting date, which is now in November rather than December. The relevant “snapshot” date remains in June.

For further commentary on the updated FAQ document, please see our article on the topic – Gender Pay Gap Reporting – Top 10 FAQs

Claim Fails Due to Incorrect Employer Name

Two separate appeals were brought to the Labour Court in the case of Deborah McMahon v Lawlor’s Hotel under the Employment Equality Acts and the Health and Safety Acts. Ms. McMahon was a previous employee of Lawlor’s hotel until her dismissal in April 2023. She alleged “verbal and sexual abuse” at the hands of the hotel’s general manager and said that she followed her employer’s grievance procedure but the issue was not investigated.

Representatives of Burkes Hotel Limited appeared at the Labour Court and argued that Ms. McMahon, despite bringing the case against Lawlor’s Hotel, had been an employee of Burkes Hotel Limited at all material times. Lawlor’s Hotel was merely a registered trading name of the Company. This was evidenced by Ms. McMahon’s contract of employment, payslips and employee handbook.

The Labour Court concluded that Ms. McMahon was indeed on notice at all times that the correct employer for the purpose of bringing claims under the Employment Equality Acts and the Health and Safety legislation was Burkes Hotel Limited. It was determined that this oversight was “not something that the Court has any statutory basis to rectify”. The Labour Court stated that there was no jurisdiction for the claim.

We often see employees using an incorrect name of the employing entity on the complaint form. This case confirms the position that the WRC / Labour Court will not hear a claim where there is an incorrect legal name of the employing entity listed on the complaint form.

WRC Decision on the Importance of Occupational Health Referrals

A former employee has recently been awarded €15,800 in a constructive unfair dismissal complaint where she argued that she had repeatedly communicated to her employer that her mental and physical health were suffering due to staffing issues and work-load and her employer failed to take appropriate action to address this situation. The employee never raised a grievance about these issues but had voiced her concerns to management.

The Adjudication Officer in the WRC determined that the employer had failed in its duty of care to protect the employee’s health, safety and wellbeing while at work. The decision also referenced that the employer’s failure to respond adequately to the concerns raised had amounted to repudiation of contract, therefore she succeeded in a case of constructive unfair dismissal.

This case is a helpful reminder for employers to ensure that they adequately address any on-going concerns related to an employee’s mental or physical health where they have been made aware of such issues.