LCR22568

FULL RECOMMENDATION

SECTION 26(1), INDUSTRIAL RELATIONS ACT, 1990

PARTIES :

CLARE COUNTY COUNCIL
(REPRESENTED BY LGMA)

- AND -

6 WORKERS
(REPRESENTED BY FORSA)

DIVISION :

SUBJECT:

1. Non-Payment of Fees for Fieldwork in 2020.

BACKGROUND:
2. This matter could not be resolved at local level and was the subject of Conciliation Conferences under the auspices of the Workplace Relations Commission. As agreement was not reached, the matter was referred to the Labour Court on 6 September 2021 in accordance with Section 26(1) of the Industrial Relations Act, 1990. A Labour Court hearing took place in a virtual courtroom on 15 December 2021.

UNION’S ARGUMENTS:

3. 1. The Union states that the Members concerned are entitled to be paid the franchise fees (wages) for the times during 2020 when they were stood down from carrying out field work by the Employer following Government Guidelines and safety concerns during the COVID-19 pandemic.

2. The Unio request the Court to find in their Member's favour and recommend the Employer pay the Members the sums of monies owing (as per the schedule handed to the Court).

EMPLOYER'S ARGUMENTS:

4. 1. The Employer states that the COVID-19 pandemic resulted in a cessation of all but the most essential of services across the State and the Union Members work has ceased in adherence to public health advice. 

2. The Employer states the Union Members are being compensated in accordance with National Agreements and the Employer respectively requests that the Court reject the claim for payment of unworked activity. 

RECOMMENDATION :

The matter before the Court is a claim of compensation for loss of earnings arising from the non-payment of franchise fees for fieldwork. The claim is submitted on behalf of six workers in Clare County Council who carried out fieldwork activities relating to the Register of Electors, until that work ceased in March 2020 as a result of the Covid 19 pandemic.

The six workers are former Revenue Collectors, who carried out fieldwork in addition to their permanent roles as full-time Staff Officers in Clare County Council. Fieldwork was undertaken outside of working hours and franchise fees were paid to the Workers at a fixed rate of €5.08 per 10 names on the register at the time of publication. Payment was made outside of normal salary by way of a lump sum paid annually after the publication of the register in February.

In August 2020, the workers were notified that a review of the procedures for maintaining the Register of Electors would be undertaken. In January 2021, the Council confirmed that the outcome of the review was to discontinue fieldwork activities, as advances in technology and data collection meant such activities were no longer required.

The parties have reached agreement on compensation for loss of earnings arising from the discontinuation of fieldwork in 2021, in line with the formula set down in Public Service Agreement.

The claim before the Court relates to compensation for loss of earnings in 2020, before the outcome of the review was decided, when work was not carried out due to public health advice.

The Union submits that the Council unilaterally withheld payments due to the six workers in 2020 in circumstances where they were available for work and that work was ceased as a result of public health advice.

The union relies on a 2009 Council/Union agreement which provides that the six officers, all former Revenue Officers, would maintain fieldwork activities until retirement, as long as the Council retained the franchise for collating the elector register data.

The union requests that the Court recommends payment of an amount equivalent to what was paid to the six workers the previous year, as Register numbers remain relatively the same. It cites Storm Ophelia in 2017 and Storm Emma in 2018 as comparable situations where workers were unable to perform their normal duties but were still paid.

The Council submits that there is no basis to compensate employees for work not undertaken. Fieldwork activities could not be carried out in 2020 due to public health advice. The fieldwork activities did not form part of the duties of the substantive grade of the six Staff Officers. The work undertaken was voluntary and undertaken outside of normal hours.

The Workers in this case are already being compensated in accordance with National Agreements for loss of earning arising from the discontinuation of fieldwork activities. The provision for compensation for loss of earnings is provided for in Public Service Agreements are not applicable to the matter before the Court and concession of the union’s claim would have significant knock-on implications across the public and private sectors.

The Court has given careful consideration to the submissions made by parties.

The Court notes that the parties have reached an agreement on compensation for loss of earnings arising from the discontinuation of fieldwork in 2021. The outstanding matter in dispute between the parties relates to the period in 2020 when fieldwork ceased as a result of the Covid-19 pandemic and before a Council decision was taken that fieldwork activities were no longer required.

The Union contends that the Council withheld payments due to the six workers. It submits that they should have received payment for work not undertaken, on the basis that they had an expectation that it would occur.

The Court notes the fieldwork undertaken by the six workers on the register of electors was voluntary and undertaken outside of normal working hours.

The work did not form any part of the duties attached to their substantive grade. The Court cannot support the Union’s contention that the Council withheld payments due to the six workers in 2020 in circumstances where no work was carried out by the workers concerned.

The Union in support of its claim referred to specific examples relating to Storm Ophelia and Storm Emma, where workers who were forced to stay away from work received payments. Those situations were one off weather events and in the Court’s view are not comparable to the ongoing crisis that resulted from the Covid-19 global pandemic.

Having regard to all of the circumstances, the Court is of the view that there is no basis to compensate the six workers in this case for work not undertaken. The claim of compensation for loss of earnings arising from the non-payment of franchise fees when fieldwork ceased in March 2020 as a result of the Covid 19 pandemic is rejected.

The Court so recommends.

NOTE

Enquiries concerning this Recommendation should be addressed to Therese Hickey, Court Secretary.