Complainant

Respondent

Parties

Glenn  Kearney

Aos Security Management Solutions Ltd.

[Name amended on consent]

Representatives

Self-represented

Niall Murphy,

Solicitor of Finbarr Murphy Solicitors

Act

Complaint Reference No.

Date of Receipt

Complaint seeking adjudication by the Workplace Relations Commission under Section 8 of the Unfair Dismissals Act, 1977

CA-00069540-001

25/02/2025

The Complainant worked for the Respondent company as a security guard from 20/04/2022 to 09/07/2023. He submits that he was dismissed, and that that dismissal was unfair. He filed his WRC complaint form on 25/02/2025.

The Respondent denies the Complainant’s claims. The Respondent further submitted that the WRC complaint was filed very significantly out of time, beyond any potential time extension, and that the WRC has no jurisdiction to hear the case.

As the Complainant was self-represented, the Adjudication Officer at the hearing, took the Complainant’s evidence in relation to the timeline.

The Complainant acknowledged that the date filled out on the complaint form, as his date of dismissal was 9/7/2023, and that after that point, he did not do any further work for the Respondent company. It was his case that he had been dismissed, and that the dismissal was unfair.

He submitted that during his time working for the Respondent, he did a total of 631 hours work (typically comprising twelve (12) and fourteen (14) hour shifts), that he was paid at an hourly rate, and that he worked as a security officer.

He further acknowledged that he had filed the WRC complaint form on 25/02/2025.

In attendance at the hearing were:-

·       Mr. Finbarr Murphy, Solicitor, Respondent for the Respondent.

·       Ms. Jan Harte, external HR manager

·       Mr. Gavin Lynch, Operations Manager of the Respondent company

·       Ms. Jen O’Sullivan, Managing Director of the Respondent company

As a preliminary matter, the Solicitor for the Respondent, submitted that the complaint was significantly out of time; and also sought clarification in relation to some submissions the Complainant had made which did not pertain to the unfair dismissal complaint submitted.

Having heard the Respondent’s application in relation to the case being very significantly out of time, and having taken the Complainant’s evidence confirming the dates submitted, the Adjudication Officer rose for fifteen (15) minutes at the hearing, and interrogated the contents of the file, to ensure nothing else had been submitted within the relevant timeframe. She found that it had not, and on that basis, explained to the parties at the hearing that she had no jurisdiction to hear the case.

She outlined the initial requirement to file a complaint ‘within six months’ and the potential extension up to a maximum on 12 months, that there is significant case law on that point, and that an extension is difficult to obtain. But, in this case, the complaint was filed one year and seven months after the last date the Complainant identified as his date of dismissal, i.e. the date after which he did no further work for the Respondent.

s. 8 (2) of the Unfair Dismissals Act 1977, sets out the time limit for filing a complaint as being ‘within six months of the date of the relevant dismissal.’

Section 41(8) of the Workplace Relations Act 2015 sets out that:-

‘(8) An adjudication officer may entertain a complaint or dispute to which this section applies presented or referred to the Director General after the expiration of the period referred to in subsection (6) or (7) (but not later than 6 months after such expiration), as the case may be, if he or she is satisfied that the failure to present the complaint or refer the dispute within that period was due to reasonable cause.’

The principles for the extension of time for ‘reasonable cause’ up to a possible maximum of 12 months are set out in the Labour Court case of Cementation Skanska v Carroll, DWT 38/2003.

In this case, the WRC complaint was filed beyond any possible extended time limit.

I therefore do not have jurisdiction to hear the complaint.

I find for the Respondent.

I find that this complaint is not well founded, for the reasons outlined above.

Unfair Dismissal; Out of time; No jurisdiction;