Olive Bree awarded €250 notice pay and €70 for public holiday

The Workplace Relations Commission found that Olive Bree was entitled to one week’s statutory notice and awarded her €250, and awarded €70 for unpaid public holiday pay. The decision was dated 15 September 2023. Bree, a care assistant with Jama Homecare Services Limited, said she was dismissed after raising an issue about her Christmas Eve roster, which she alleged was a protected disclosure. The company said it dismissed her after she failed an extended probation and denied knowing about the disclosure. The WRC found Bree was not unfairly dismissed because the alleged disclosure had not been communicated to the person who decided to dismiss her. It also found that fuel expenses were not wages under the Payment of Wages Act, but that she was owed public holiday compensation. The company was directed to pay a further €600 for the pandemic recognition payment if she had not already received it.