Complainant

Respondent

Parties

Mr Charlie  McMonagle

PJ McLoughlin Ltd

Representatives

Self-Represented

The Respondent did not attend and was not represented at hearing. 

Act

Complaint/Dispute Reference No.

Date of Receipt

Complaint seeking adjudication by the Workplace Relations Commission under Sick Leave Act 2022

CA-00077003-001

31/10/2025

Complaint seeking adjudication by the Workplace Relations Commission under Regulation 15 of the  European Communities (Organisation of Working Time) (Mobile Staff in Civil Aviation) Regulations 2006 - S.I. No. 507 of 2006

CA-00077003-002 WITHDRAWN AT HEARING

31/10/2025

Complaint seeking adjudication by the Workplace Relations Commission under section 7 of the Terms of Employment (Information) Act, 1994

CA-00077003-003

31/10/2025

These matters came before the Workplace Relations Commission dated 31/10/2025.  The Complainant alleges contraventions by the Respondent of provisions of the above listed statutes in relation to his employment with the Respondent.  The aforesaid complaints were referred to me for investigation.  A hearing for that purpose was scheduled to take place on 21/08/2026. 

The Complainant is a Stone Mason.  The Respondent is engaged in building construction; civil engineering; and property development.

The Complainant at hearing submits he negotiated an agreement with the foreman on site for €35 per hour for a 40-hour week plus expenses of €300 per week. 

The Respondent did not attend the hearing. 

CA-00077003-001 complaint pursuant to the Sick Leave Act 2022

The Complainant submits he was not paid his statutory sick leave following a period of certified sick leave 26/12/2024 to 07/01/2025.   The Complainant submits he handed the cert in at the office of the Respondent in Longford on 07/01/2025.   

CA-00077003-003 complaint pursuant to section 7 of the Terms of Employment (Information) Act, 1994 (“the 1994 Act”).

The Complainant submits he never received anything in writing regarding his terms and conditions.  The Complainant submits he did not ask about a contract. 

There was no appearance by or on behalf of the Respondent at the hearing. 

I note the Respondent had engaged with the WRC as follows on or around 19/02/2026:

Dear Sir/Madam, Charlie Mc Monagle received his payslips every week electronically (as per attached). If he did not receive his payslips then how have they come with his complaint? He, as part of his complaint states he was not paid sick leave, when was he out sick? We were not aware of any sick leave taken and did not receive any Doctors Certificates when he was in our employment. His original request regarding pay was €30 an hour and €250 expenses, then he changed his mind and wanted €35 an hour which we paid him. Then after awhile he wanted €300 expenses a week which he was paid. There was no agreement of 40 hours guaranteed pay. There was the opportunity to work 40 plus hours and whatever actual hours he worked he was paid for. I trust this concludes this matter. 

Hi [redacted] Thanks for your email. I understand that a case can only be closed if the complainant withdraws a complaint or it goes to adjudication. I just want to note that I have no intention of sitting through an adjudication with the complainant as he has made threats against me personally and to my business. I have had to engage with the guards and my solicitor over same. Please feel free to make any decision you want on his incorrect claim but I will have no physical dealings with this man. If you require me to forward evidence of his threats or the Guards and solicitors information on it please let me know. Kind regards,

The Respondent filed the following on 13/03/2026:

Hi [redacted], In response to his letter. That sick cert is of no relevance to us as his employment ceased as of May 2025 (as per attached indicating date of last inclusion on the payroll) after his resignation so therefore he is not entitled to sick pay as it falls outside of his employment. The receiving his payslip 17th April and no wages till 22nd April is a misunderstanding on his behalf. The wages are completed a few days before they are processed through the bank and when they are completed on the pay package they send out the payslips by email. He got paid just not on the day the wages were complete which is the norm in our workplace. In relation to his start date no one is saying he did start the 14th of March so I don't see the relevance here? Again I must express he is not due nor entitled to any monies for any of his complaints.

The Respondent filed the following on 30/06/2026. 

To whom it may concern, I received an email this morning requesting myself or a former employee of the company be present for a hearing in August. Jude will be not attending as he no longer works with the company and has no knowledge of the other party or his bogus claims. I as explained before in my previous correspondence have no intention of sitting with, near or being in the presence of Mr. Mongale. As previously stated I had to go my solicitor and the guards over his threats towards me and my family. He also tried to set fire to a building in Dublin Castle. Should you require any proof of these incidents I can by all means forward this on. He is not due any monies for anything and I will not be entertaining this any further. Regards, Ruth

The Respondent did not attend the scheduled hearing and representations or applications were made seeking a postponement.

Therefore, no sworn evidence from the Respondent was available to the Adjudication Officer at the hearing.

In circumstances where I am satisfied that the Respondent was properly served with notice of the date, time and venue of the adjudication hearing and having waited some time to accommodate a late arrival and where I formally opened and closed the adjudication hearing on 21/08/2026 I will proceed to set out hereunder my findings and conclusions.

In conducting my investigation and in reaching my decision, I have carefully reviewed all relevant documents provided to me.  I have carefully considered the oral evidence adduced at hearing.  I deemed it necessary to make my own inquiries into the complaint during hearing to establish and understand the facts and to seek clarification on certain matters.  

CA-00077003-001 complaint pursuant to the Sick Leave Act 2022

The medical certificate opened to the hearing by the Complainant provides that the Complainant is unfit for work from 26/12/2024 to 09/01/2025.

The complaint was presented on 31/10/2025 to the Workplace Relations Commission. This falls outside the six‑month statutory time limit prescribed by Section 41 (7) (iii) (h) of the Workplace Relations Act 2015: -

“ in the case of a dispute relating to the entitlement of an employee under the Sick Leave Act 2022, it has been referred to the Director General after the expiration of the period of 6 months beginning on the day immediately following the date of the occurrence of the dispute”

I do not have jurisdiction to hear this complaint because it was not referred to the WRC until 31/10/2025 which is outside of the six-month time period set out in the legislation.   

Accordingly, I find this complaint to be not well-founded.

CA-00077003-003 complaint pursuant to section 7 of the Terms of Employment (Information) Act, 1994 (“the 1994 Act”)

The Relevant Law

Section 3(1) & (1A) of the Terms of Employment (Information) Act 1994 provide as follows: 

“Written statement of terms of employment:

3(1) An employer shall, not later than one month after the commencement of an employee’s employment with the employer, give or cause to be given to the employee a statement in writing containing the following particulars of the terms of the employee’s employment, that is to say-…

(fa) a reference to any registered employment agreement or employment regulation order which applies to the employee and confirmation of where the employee may obtain a copy of such agreement or order,…

(ga) that the employee may, under section 23 of the National Minimum Wage Act, 2000, request from the employer a written statement of the employee’s average hourly rate of pay for any pay reference period as provided in that section,

(h) the length of the intervals between the times at which remuneration is paid, whether a week, a month or any other interval,…

(j) any terms or conditions relating to paid leave (other than paid sick leave),

(k) any terms or conditions relating to- (i) incapacity for work due to sickness or injury and paid sick leave, and (ii) pensions and pension schemes,

(l) the period of notice which the employee is required to give and entitled to receive (whether by or under statute or under the terms of the employee’s contract of employment) to determine the employee’s contract of employment or, where this cannot be indicated when the information is given, the method for determining such periods of notice,

(m) a reference to any collective agreements which directly affect the terms and conditions of the employee’s employment including, where the employer is not a party to such agreements, particulars of the bodies or institutions by whom they were made,

(n) the training entitlement, if any, provided by the employer,

(o) in the case of a temporary contract of employment, the identity of the user undertakings (within the meaning of Directive 2008/104/EC of the European Parliament and of the Council of 19 November 20085 on temporary agency work), when and as soon as known, and

(p) if the work pattern of an employee is entirely or mostly unpredictable, the statement shall inform the employee of - (i) the principle that the work schedule is variable, the number of guaranteed paid hours and the remuneration for work performed in addition to those guaranteed hours, (ii) the reference hours and days within which the employee may be required to work, and (iii) the minimum notice period to which the employee is entitled to before the start of a work assignment and, where applicable, the deadline for notification in accordance with section 17 of the Organisation of Working Time Act 1997, and

(q) where it is the responsibility of the employer, the identity of the social security institutions receiving the social insurance contributions attached to the contract of employment and any protection relating to social security provided by the employer;

(1A) Without prejudice to subsection (1), an employer shall, not later than 5 days after the commencement of an employee’s employment with the employer, give or cause to be given to the employee a statement in writing containing the following particulars of the terms of the employee’s employment, that is to say:

(a) the full names of the employer and the employee,

(b) the address of the employer in the State or, where appropriate, the address of the principal place of the relevant business of the employer in the State or the registered office (within the meaning of the Companies Act 2014),

(c) in the case of a temporary contract of employment, the expected duration thereof or, if the contract of employment is for a fixed term, the date on which the contract expires,

(d) the remuneration, including the initial basic amount, any other component elements, if applicable, indicated separately, the frequency and method of payment of the remuneration to which the employee is entitled and the pay reference period for the purposes of the National Minimum Wage Act 2000,

(e) the number of hours which the employer reasonably expects the employee to work- (i) per normal working day, and (ii) per normal working week,

(f) where sections 4B to 4E (in so far as they are in operation) of the Payment of Wages Act 1991 apply to the employer, the employer’s policy on the manner in which tips or gratuities and mandatory charges (within the meaning of section 1 of that Act) are treated,

(g) the place of work or, where there is no fixed or main place of work, a statement specifying that the employee is employed at various places or is free to determine his or her place of work or to work at various places,

(h) either- (i) the title, grade, nature or category of work for which the employee is employed, or (ii) a brief specification or description of the work,

(i) the date of commencement of the employee’s contract of employment,

(j) any terms or conditions relating to hours of work (including overtime),

(k) where a probationary period applies, its duration and conditions.”

Section 3A of the Act provides:

Form of statement to be provided

“A statement furnished by an employer under section 3, 4, 5, 6, 6E or 6F shall be—

(a) signed and dated by or on behalf of the employer,

(b) in writing, and

(c) transmitted on paper or, provided that the information is accessible to the employee, that it can be stored and printed, and that the employer retains proof of transmission or receipt, in electronic form.”

The Relevant Facts

The Complainant submits he never received a contract and upon enquiry submits he never asked about a contract. 

On the basis of the Revenue documentation provided by the Complainant after the hearing at my request, I find that his employment with the Respondent commenced on 19 March 2025 and ended on 9 July 2025.  It would appear there may have been an earlier period of employment with the same Respondent from on or about May 2024 to on or about October 2024 on the basis of documents provided by the Respondent. 

I am taking into account the most recent period of employment provided on revenue documents for the purpose of this inquiry. 

The within complaint was filed with the WRC on 31/10/2025. 

By application of the time limit provided for at section 41(6) of the Workplace Relations Act 2015 the cognisable period for the purpose of this claim is confined to the six-month period ending on the date on which the complaint was presented to the WRC.  Therefore, the cognisable period covered by the complaint is the six-month period from 01/04/2025 to 31/10/2025. 

Section 41 of the Workplace Relations Act 2015 Act, as detailed above, provides that an employee may present a complaint to the Director General of the Workplace Relations Commission that their employer has contravened section 3 of the Act before the expiration of the six months period beginning on the date of contravention to which the complaint relates.

However, a breach of section 3 is well established as a continuing contravention. The Terms of Employment (Information) Act, as amended, does not state that the only date of contravention is the day after the initial one-month period expires. The Act transposes Directive 91/533/EC, known as the “Written Statement” Directive, which refers to Article 117 of the Treaty and point 9 of the Community Charter of Fundamental Social Rights of Workers.

Reading section 3(1) of the Terms of Employment (Information) Act in conformity with Article 2 of the Directive leads to the conclusion that the obligation to provide the statement subsists throughout the employment relationship. 

I am mindful of ADJ-00030153 Denise Ryan and Smart School Accounting Limited TIA Smart School Accounting where the Adjudication Officer held as follows: 

"The Terms of Employment (Information) Act, as amended by the Workplace Relations Act provides that a contravention of Section 3 occurs where, after the expiry of the initial two-month period of employment, the employee has not been provided with a statement. The contravention of Section 3 of the Act is a subsisting and a continuing contravention as long as after the initial two-month period the employee remains an employee not in possession of a statement. If no statement was provided at any stage during the employment relationship, and this came to an end, the employee could refer a complaint within six months from the last day of their employment. However, once a statement was provided during the period of employment, the time limit for submitting of the complaint is determined from the day the statement was issued to the employee.” [emphasis added] 

Having carefully considered these timelines, I am satisfied that the claim was presented within the applicable time period and that I therefore have jurisdiction to determine the substantive complaint.

I am satisfied there has been a contravention of the impleaded legislation during the relevant period on the basis of the uncontroverted evidence of the Complainant. 

Accordingly, I find this complaint to be well-founded.   

Section 7 (2) of the Act sets out the relevant reliefs as follows: 

“(2) A decision of an adjudication officer under section 41 of the Workplace Relations Act 2015 in relation to a complaint of a contravention of [section 3, 4, 5, 6, 6C, 6D, 6E, 6F or 6G] shall do one or more of the following namely—

(a) declare that the complaint was or, as the case may be, was not well founded,

(b) either—

(i) confirm all or any of the particulars contained or referred to in any statement furnished by the employer under [section 3, 4, 5, 6, 6C, 6D, 6E, 6F or 6G], or

(ii) alter or add to any such statement for the purpose of correcting any inaccuracy or omission in the statement and the statement as so altered or added to shall be deemed to have been given to the employee by the employer,

(c) require the employer to give or cause to be given to the employee concerned a written statement containing such particulars as may be specified by the adjudication officer,

(d) in relation to a complaint of a contravention under section 3, 4, 5, 6, 6C, 6D, 6E, 6F or 6G and without prejudice to any order made under paragraph (e) order the employer to pay to the employee compensation of such amount (if any) as the adjudication officer considers just and equitable having regard to all of the circumstances, but not exceeding 4 weeks' remuneration in respect of the employee's employment calculated in accordance with regulations under section 17 of the Unfair Dismissals Act 1977.”

On the basis the employment has ended there is no requirement that I direct a statement or a contract to be provided to the Complainant. 

In consideration of compensation for a contravention of the Terms of Employment (Information) Act, 1994 I apply the reasoning of the Labour Court in Morehampton Foods Limited v. Dean Gibbons [TED1718] where it was held as follows:

“Paragraph (d) of s.7(2) places an upper limit on the quantum of compensation that can be awarded in an amount equal to 4 weeks’ remuneration in respect of the employee’s remuneration…It is clear a failure to comply with s.3 constitutes a single contravention of the Act. The extent of non-compliance is a matter that goes to the gravity of the contravention and that can properly be taken into account in deciding on redress and in particular in measuring the quantum of any compensation to be awarded. However, the extent of non-compliance or the gravity of the contravention cannot offset or supplant the clear provision of s.7(2)(d) of the Act.”

I conclude it is just and equitable, having regard to all the circumstances, that I order the Respondent to pay the Complainant compensation of €3,235.25 representing two weeks’ pay based on the remuneration figures provided by the Respondent for 2025, for the contravention of a statutory right.

For the avoidance of doubt, this award is for the infringement of a statutory right and is not subject to deductions for PAYE, PRSI or USC. 

CA-00077003-001 complaint pursuant to the Sick Leave Act 2022

For the reasons set out above I decide this complaint is not well-founded. 

CA-00077003-003 complaint pursuant to section 7 of the Terms of Employment (Information) Act, 1994

For the reasons set out above, I order the Respondent to pay the Complainant compensation of €3,235.25 representing two weeks’ pay based on the remuneration figures provided by the Respondent for 2025, for the contravention of a statutory right.

For the avoidance of doubt, this award is for the infringement of a statutory right and is not subject to deductions for PAYE, PRSI or USC.