The Workplace Relations Commission ordered the Department of Enterprise Trade and Employment to pay Labour Court worker member Andrew McCarthy €3,000 after finding it breached rules on fixed-term work. The WRC decision was dated 14 September 2022.
McCarthy said his successive fixed-term appointments entitled him to a contract of indefinite duration and that he was discriminated against because of his age. The Department denied the complaints and said fixed-term appointments allowed the Labour Court to renew its membership and bring in different expertise.
The WRC accepted that the Department had objective grounds to use successive fixed-term contracts to renew and replenish Labour Court membership. It found, however, that the Department breached its duty to give McCarthy written reasons for renewing his contract instead of offering an indefinite one. The WRC said he was not entitled to an indefinite contract, but upheld his fixed-term work complaint and awarded €3,000 compensation.
The WRC rejected McCarthy’s age discrimination complaint, finding he had not established a prima facie case. It said his contract ended when it expired and funding ended, and that his age was not a factor.