A film stagehand has been awarded €6,280 after the Workplace Relations Commission found his employment terms statement deficient, while rejecting a separate complaint over unpaid wages during a lay-off. The decision was dated 15 December 2023.
Garret Arkins worked on productions for Metropolitan Films International Limited, including Vikings 6. He said he had worked for the group since 2001, with breaks between productions, and was laid off in December 2018. The company argued that he was employed by individual production companies and that his complaints were out of time. The adjudication officer found the production companies were associated with Metropolitan Films International Limited and that Arkins’s complaints were lodged within the time limit.
The officer found that the contract gave the wrong employer and start date, and directed the company to pay compensation equal to four weeks’ pay. The Payment of Wages complaint was found not well founded because wages were not properly payable while Arkins was doing no work during the lay-off. His complaint under the Organisation of Working Time Act was withdrawn.