Labour Court dismisses Patrick Mulholland’s agency-worker appeal against QED Recruitment

The Labour Court dismissed Patrick Mulholland’s appeal against a Rights Commissioner decision that his agency-worker parity complaint against Qed Recruitment Limited was not well founded. The determination was signed on 9 July 2014. Mulholland, a driver assigned to Greenstar Limited, argued that his pay, overtime and meal allowance should match the conditions of drivers employed directly by the hirer. QED said his conditions reflected information from Greenstar and that higher rates were not generally applicable. The Court found Mulholland had not shown that the conditions he claimed were generally applicable when he made his claim. A collective agreement setting standard conditions at Greenstar took effect only after he filed it. The Court also rejected QED’s argument that his contract was illegal, finding the evidence and submissions on that point unsatisfactory and wholly unreliable. It affirmed the Rights Commissioner’s decision and disallowed the appeal.