WRC awards kitchen porter €350 for rest and break breaches

The WRC awarded a kitchen porter and cleaner €350 after finding breaches of rules on rest between shifts and rest breaks. In a decision dated 29 July 2016, adjudication officer Eugene Hanly also rejected his constructive dismissal complaint. The adjudicator found two breaches of the rule requiring 11 hours’ rest between shifts and one breach of the rest-break rule. He found that the weekly-rest complaint failed because the worker received compensatory breaks, and that the changes-to-hours complaint failed because he had not been asked to work extra hours against his wishes. A complaint about working more than 48 hours a week was withdrawn. The worker said poor conditions forced him to resign. The catering company said he had not used its grievance procedure. The adjudicator found he had not raised his concerns with the employer or shown that its conduct left him no option but to resign.