The Labour Court disallowed Bridebank Mushroom Farms Limited’s appeal and determined that mushroom picker Kathleen Lewis was entitled to 20 days’ annual leave and five days’ pay for outstanding public holidays. The Court recommended that the company pay her £900, including compensation under the Organisation of Working Time Act, 1997.
The Court dated its determination 28 May 2001. The appeal concerned a Rights Commissioner’s decision on Lewis’s claim for holiday and public-holiday pay. The Rights Commissioner had recommended 20 days’ annual leave and nine public holidays for a one-year claim period. Bridebank accepted the annual-leave entitlement but disputed the public-holiday payment, saying pickers received their basic rate plus 50% when working on those days. Lewis said she had not received holiday or public-holiday pay.
The Labour Court kept the 20 days’ annual leave but reduced the public-holiday entitlement to five days’ pay. It recommended the £900 payment because of the difficulty in establishing the actual rate of pay in relation to Lewis’s hours of work.