LCR23173

PARTIES:

DIVISION:

Chairman:  Ms O'Donnell

  Employer Member: Mr Doyle

  Worker Member:  Ms Hannick

SUBJECT:

Appeal of Adjudication Officer Decision No's: ADJ-00045137 (CA-00055855 IR-SC-00001948)

BACKGROUND:

The Worker appealed the Adjudication Officer’s Recommendation to the Labour Court on 16 January 2025 in accordance with Section 13(9) of the Industrial Relations Act, 1969. On 11 December 2024, the Adjudication Officer issued the following Recommendation.

“Section 13 of the Industrial Relations Act 1969 requires that I make a recommendation in relation to the dispute.

The following section of the 1969 Industrial Relations Act does not permit me to investigate this matter further to the point of making a recommendation:

“13(3)(b) A rights commissioner shall not investigate a trade dispute—

(i) if the Court has made a recommendation in relation to the dispute”.

My opinion on the dispute presented is that I do not have jurisdiction to re-investigate this matter’’

A Labour Court hearing took place on 26 June 2025.

DECISION:

This is an appeal by a Worker of the Decision of an Adjudication Officer. The Adjudication Officer held that the complaint was in respect of issues that had already been the subject of a Labour Court recommendation LCR22724, therefore, she did not have jurisdiction to hear the complaint. There are three linked cases PW/25/9, PW/25/15 and PW/25/16.

 The representative for the Worker stated that she accepted that up to paragraph 70 of her submission had been the subject of a previous Labour Court recommendation but submitted that the last five paragraphs were in respect of what had happened following that Labour Court recommendation. It is their submission that the Employer did not follow their own procedure and in particular refused to allow the worker to articulate all her grievances. She appealed the decision not to grant her injury on duty benefit, but her appeal was unsuccessful. The representative submitted that the Worker was seeking retrospection of her losses arising from that decision, including adjustments to attendance records and sick pay, along with appropriate compensation for the undue stress and financial strain she endured.

 The Employer submitted that it had complied with Labour Court recommendation LCR22724. A stage two grievance hearing was held on 27 June 2023, and an appeal stage 3 hearing was held on 25 August 2023. The Worker was advised of the outcome of the process on 6 October 2023.

  Labour Court recommendation LCR22724 stated “In all the circumstances, the Court recommends, in the interest of the orderly conduct of Industrial relations, that the parties should agree locally how the grievance procedure can, even at this remove in time, be re-engaged so as to secure an outcome through those procedures to the worker’s grievance. That recommendation issued on 24 March 2023.”

It was not disputed before the Court that stage two and stage 3 hearings were held in the timeframe set out above which led to an outcome to the Worker’s grievances albeit not the outcome she wished for. The parties should now consider this matter closed.

 The Decision of the Adjudication Officer is varied accordingly.

The Court so decides.

	Signed on behalf of the Labour Court
	Louise O'Donnell
AR	______________________
08 August 2025	Chairman

NOTE

Enquiries concerning this Decision should be in writing and addressed to Mr Aidan Ralph, Court Secretary.