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FULL RECOMMENDATION
PARTIES : VIATRIS DIVISION :
SUBJECT: 1. Loss Of Share Purchase Scheme. The Company operates in the pharmaceutical sector and was formed through the merger of Mylan and Upjohn, a legacy division of Pfizer. The Workers are employed in the Company’s site in Little Island, Co. Cork. When that site was part of the Pfizer group, a 12% bonus scheme was in place and employees had the option to buy shares under the Pfizer share purchase scheme. This facilitated employees in obtaining a reduction in the income tax liability arising from their bonus earnings. Following the change in ownership on 16 November 2020, employees of the Company were no longer eligible to participate in the Pfizer scheme. The Company, however, committed to introduce its own Revenue-approved scheme. This apparently took longer than anticipated as Revenue rules had been amended and it was no longer possible to replicate the terms of the Pfizer scheme. Having consulted with both trade unions who represent employees on the site, the Company decided to make a one-off payment to employees to off-set the loss of benefit that had accrued to them in the period following the end of their access to the Pfizer share purchase scheme. In order to determine the level of payment to be made to individual employees, the following parameters were applied: The previous two Pfizer share purchase cycles were reviewed (i.e. that of December 2019 and that of June 2020) and in the case of each employee, the value of his or her higher share purchase of those two cycles was taken as the basis for the calculation of the once-off payment to be made to him or her; The amount thus identified was then doubled to cover the 12-month comparability period; The maximum share purchase allowable under the Pfizer scheme was taken into consideration i.e. 12% bonus and salary forego of 7.5% of base salary, up to a maximum of €12,700.00. Approximately thirty-five employees, including the two Workers on whose behalf this dispute was referred to the Court, did not qualify for a once-off payment on the basis of the foregoing, as they had not purchased shares in the relevant period. The Union submits that the two-year reference period used to calculate the once-payment to employees was unilaterally imposed by the Company. The Company disagrees and submits that the decision to use the two-year period chosen was made following consultations with the trade unions. The Union also submits that the within dispute relates to the Workers’ loss of opportunity per se. The Company, in response, submits that ‘loss of opportunity’ is not comprehended by the definition of a trade dispute for the purposes of the Industrial Relations Acts. It is also submitted on behalf of the Company, that it had received universally positive feedback from the workforce in response to its gesture of goodwill in making the payment to offset employees’ loss in the period before the new share purchase scheme could be put in place. Prior to the matter coming on for hearing, the Company made an offer of €500.00 gross to each of the two Workers. The Court was informed that this offer remained on the table. The Court, having heard the Parties, and having considered the steps followed by the Company to determine an appropriate level of payment to employees having regard to each individual’s level of participation in the Pfizer scheme over a defined period, in consultation with both trade unions on site, finds that the Company’s approach was reasonable and fair. The Court, therefore, recommends that the Workers accept the offer of €500.00 gross in full and final settlement of the within dispute. The Court so recommends.
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