WRC rejects Flutter worker’s claim over lost overtime

The Workplace Relations Commission found that Ken McSweeney’s complaint against Flutter Entertainment Plc was not well founded after his regular overtime stopped during the Covid-19 restrictions. The decision was dated November 11, 2022. McSweeney, who managed the Breffni betting store on the Navan Road, said he had usually worked 48 hours a week, including eight hours of overtime, before the restrictions. When the stores reopened, he was rostered for his 40 contracted hours and said the lost overtime reduced his earnings. Flutter said overtime depended on business needs and was not guaranteed by his contract. The adjudication officer found that McSweeney’s overtime had been regular and rostered, but was not compulsory or contractually required. Because he had not worked those hours, the lost overtime pay was not wages properly payable under the Payment of Wages Act, the officer concluded. The complaint was therefore not well founded, and no compensation was awarded.