Newspaper operator’s penalisation complaint rejected by WRC

This report is a localnews.ie summary based on public court reporting and records; sources are listed below.

An unnamed newspaper operator’s complaint that he was penalised over Christmas shifts was rejected by the Workplace Relations Commission in a recommendation dated 14 July 2022; the hearing took place on 4 July 2022.

The worker said he was denied premium shifts after making a complaint against his supervisor. The employer said demand exceeded available shifts and that applicants needed to be available for other dates; the worker was not available for those shifts.

The adjudication officer found no evidence linking the worker’s complaint to the shift allocation. He said the worker had at best a 50% chance of selection, reduced to no chance if availability for the associated shifts was required.

The recommendation also found that the employer’s investigation procedure lacked an appeal mechanism, but described the breach as technical because there was no merit to the penalisation allegation. The officer did not recommend in favour of the worker.