PWD2624

PARTIES:

DIVISION:

SUBJECT:

Appeal of Adjudication Officer Decision No.: ADJ-00057736 (CA-00070243-001)

BACKGROUND:

This is an appeal of an Adjudication Officer’s Decision made pursuant to the Payment of Wages Act, 1991. 

The appeal was heard by the Labour Court in accordance with Section 44 of the Workplace Relations Act, 2015. 

The following is the Court's Decision.

DECISION:

This is an appeal by Mr Dmitrii Kovalchuk (the Complainant) against Decision ADJ-00057736 CA-00070243-001 of an Adjudication Officer under the Payment of Wages Act, 1991 (the Act), in respect of his complaint against his then employer, Nugent Linen Limited (the Respondent). The Adjudication Officer held that the complaint was not well founded.

Background

The Complainant was employed from 1 September 2021 until 31 December 2021. He claims that he was not paid, or was not paid the correct amount, during that period. The Complainant lodged his complaint with the WRC on 25 March 2025. The relevant period for the purposes of the Act is 26 September 2024 to 25 March 2025.

Preliminary issues

The Respondent did not attend the hearing.

The Complainant’s employment came to an end on 31 December 2021. His complaint was not lodged until 25 March 2025 and, even if the Court were to allow for the extensions provided for in the Act, that would only bring the relevant period back to 26 March 2024, whereas his employment had ended a number of years earlier.

In response to a clarification sought by the Court, the Complainant was unable to identify any statutory provision that would allow the Court to go beyond the 12-month period provided for in the Act.

Given that the Complainant’s employment ended on 31 December 2021, he had until 30 June 2022 to lodge his complaint or, where reasonable cause was shown, until 30 December 2022. The Court does not have jurisdiction to consider complaints submitted outside that statutory period. On that basis, the appeal must fail.

Determination

For all the reasons set out above, the Court finds that the complaint under the Act is statute-barred and must therefore fail. The Court cannot proceed to hear the substantive matter.

Accordingly, the Complainant’s appeal is not allowed, and the decision of the Adjudication Officer is upheld.

The Court so determines.

	Signed on behalf of the Labour Court
	Louise O'Donnell
AM	______________________
07/09/2026	Chairman

NOTE

Enquiries concerning this Decision should be addressed to Ms Áine Maunsell, Court Secretary.