Complainant

Respondent

Parties

Derek Clarke

SCS Haulage Dublin Limited

Representatives

Self-represented

Peninsula Business Services Ireland

Act

Complaint Reference No.

Date of Receipt

Complaint seeking adjudication by the Workplace Relations Commission under section 6 of the Payment of Wages Act, 1991

CA-00067858-001

04/12/2024

Complaint seeking adjudication by the Workplace Relations Commission under section 6 of the Payment of Wages Act, 1991

CA-00067858-002

04/12/2024

The respondent is a courier business and the complainant commenced working for them as a van driver on September 12th 2023.  He resigned on Tuesday, June 11th 2024, because he felt that he wasn’t being paid for all the hours it took for him to make the deliveries assigned to him.  Although he was asked by the transport manager to work his notice of one week, he finished up on Friday, June 14th.

On the day he resigned, Tuesday, June 11th, the complainant was on a delivery to Waterford, when the van he was driving broke down.  Part of the consignment for delivery consisted of eight kegs of beer for a pub in Tramore.  The delivery note stated that the driver was to phone the publican 15 minutes before he arrived, so that he could gain access to the pub to bring in the beer.  At the hearing, the complainant said that he didn’t phone the publican, because they never answer their phones.  When he arrived at the pub, he couldn’t gain entry and he lifted the kegs over a fence and dropped them on the other side.  One of the kegs burst.  The publican complained to the transport manager and a new consignment of eight kegs was delivered the next day by a different driver, who brought back the kegs that the complainant had delivered on June 12th.

When he received his final wages on June 21st 2024, the complainant was deducted €85.00 for the cost of the damaged keg and €220.00 for the cost of the repeat delivery to Tramore on June 12th.  In contravention of s.5 of the Payment of Wages Act 1991, he claims that this was an illegal deduction from his wages.

The complainant claims also that he didn’t receive his outstanding holiday pay at the time of his resignation.  He said that between the date he started with the company on September 12th 2023 and his last day at work on June 14th 2024, he took five days’ holidays.

At the hearing of these complaints, the transport manager, Mr Holmes, submitted a copy of an agreement signed by the complainant when he joined the company, with the title, “Deductions from Pay Agreement.”  This document contains 18 clauses with details of the actions, failures to act, errors, misconduct, overpayments, loss of equipment and various other reasons that will result in a deduction from wages.  The complainant agreed that he signed this document.  Clause 8 provides as follows:

“Any damage to vehicles, stock or property (including non-statutory safety equipment) that is the result of your carelessness, negligence or deliberate vandalism will render you liable to pay the full or part of the cost of repair or replacement.

Any loss to us that is the result of your failure to observe rules, procedures, or instruction, or is as a result of your negligent behaviour or your unsatisfactory standards of work will render you liable to reimburse to us the full or part of the cost of the loss.

In the event of an at fault accident whilst driving one of our vehicles, you may be required to pay the cost of the insurance excess.”

In her submission, Ms Urbon stated that this document is included in the complainant’s contract of employment and that he gave his prior written consent to the deduction from his wages.  In support of the respondent’s position, she referred to the decision of the Labour Court in Citijet DAC v Ryan[1], where the Court held that the deduction of €3,431.62 from Mr Ryan’s wages in relation to the balance of the cost of training was authorised by the terms of his contract of employment.

Concerning the complainant’s claim for outstanding holiday pay, while the respondent undertook to send details of the complainant’s holiday record to the WRC after the hearing on Friday, June 27th, four weeks later, on Friday, July 25th 2025, no details had been provided.

CA-00067858-001:  Complaint about the Deduction from Wages

This complaint is properly for consideration under s.5(2) of the Payment of Wages Act 1991:

(2) An employer shall not make a deduction from the wages of an employee in respect of -

(a) any act or omission of the employee, or

(b) any goods or services supplied to or provided for the employee by the employer the supply or provision of which is necessary to the employment,

unless—

(i) the deduction is required or authorised to be made by virtue of a term (whether express or implied and, if express, whether oral or in writing) of the contract of employment made between the employer and the employee, and

(ii) the deduction is of an amount that is fair and reasonable having regard to all the circumstances (including the amount of the wages of the employee), and

(iii) before the time of the act or omission or the provision of the goods or services, the employee has been furnished with -

(I) in case the term referred to in subparagraph (i) is in writing, a copy thereof,

(II) in any other case, notice in writing of the existence and effect of the term,

and

(iv) in case the deduction is in respect of an act or omission of the employee, the employee has been furnished, at least one week before the making of the deduction, with particulars in writing of the act or omission and the amount of the deduction[.]

Subsections (v), (vi) and (vii) are not relevant to the complaint under consideration.

It is apparent from the evidence at the hearing that the complainant signed an agreement to consent to his employer deducting from his wages the cost of any damage to stock or the cost of any losses that were due to his failure to follow an instruction.  In the circumstances faced by this employer however, s.5(2) requires an additional provision, at subsection (iv) above, for a complainant to receive written notice at least one week in advance of the deduction, with details of the reason and the amount being deducted.  I understand from the evidence of the complainant that he did not receive any such written notification and the first indication he got that there was a deduction from his wages was from the payslip he received on June 21st, one week after he resigned.

As the legislation clearly provides that an employer shall not make a deduction without such a written notification at least one week in advance, I must conclude that the deduction was in fact illegal.

CA-00067858-002:  Complaint about the Non-payment of Outstanding Holidays

In the leave year 2023, the complainant was employed by the respondent for 15 weeks.  At the end of the leave year 2023, he had an entitlement to 5.8 days’ holidays and, at the hearing, he said that he took one week’s holidays.  Between January 2025 and the date of his departure on June 14th, the complainant worked for the respondent for 24 weeks and he was entitled to 9.2 days’ holidays.  No evidence has been submitted that he took any holidays in 2024.

Taking account therefore of the complainant’s carried-over leave from 2023 of .8 of a day, and his entitlement to 9.2 days’ holidays in 2024, I find that, at the termination of his employment, he was entitled to 10 days’ pay for holidays not taken.

CA-00067858-001:  Complaint about the Deduction from Wages

I have concluded that, on June 21st 2024, the respondent made an illegal deduction from the complainant’s final wages and I decide therefore, that this complaint is well founded.  I direct the respondent to pay the complainant compensation of €305.00, which was the amount deducted.

CA-00067858-002:  Complaint about the Non-payment of Outstanding Holidays

I decide that this complaint is well founded and I direct the respondent to pay the complainant compensation of €1,012, equivalent to 10 days’ pay. 

As this total award of €1,317 is compensation for breaches of statutory rights, the amount is not subject to deductions for tax, PRSI or USC.

Payment of wages, deductions from wages, holiday pay