ESB Networks wins three complaints over MyTime timesheet system

The Workplace Relations Commission found three complaints by ESB Networks network technician Brian Baitson not well-founded, ruling that the MyTime timesheet system did not unlawfully change his employment terms and that delayed payments were not unlawful deductions. Baitson said introducing the digital system changed his employment terms, that delayed overtime and allowance payments were linked to his Independent Workers’ Union membership, and that he was penalised for refusing to use it. ESB Networks said MyTime changed work practices and that manually processing paper timesheets delayed non-base payments. The adjudicator found MyTime changed work practices, not Baitson’s terms and conditions. Delays arose from his refusal to use the app, with no causal link to his union membership. For the wages complaint, the adjudicator considered the six months before the complaint was received and found that a delayed €4,000 payment on 15 April 2022 was not an unlawful deduction. The decision was dated 13 December 2022.