Labour Court overturns €1,000 recommendation to UCC worker

The Labour Court overturned a Rights Commissioner’s €1,000 recommendation to compensate a University College Cork worker for delay in returning to full-time work. The decision was dated 11 April 2013. The worker, represented by the Services Industrial Professional Technical Union, had requested a return to full-time work in March 2011. She began working full time temporarily in September 2011 and was made permanent in April 2012. The union sought compensation for the delay and lost earnings; UCC said public-service staffing controls constrained its response. The Court found the temporary and permanent placements reasonable within the constraints on the university and said compensation was not appropriate. It therefore overturned the recommendation.