The Labour Court overturned a €1,000 award against Flexsource Solutions Ltd after finding that temporary agency worker Mariusz Rutkowski’s pay included compensation for Sunday work. The determination was signed on 27 February 2014, and the Court allowed the company’s appeal.
Rutkowski had complained that Flexsource failed to compensate him properly for Sunday working while he was placed at Musgrave Retail Partners Ireland’s site in Co Kildare. The Rights Commissioner had upheld the complaint in part and awarded him €1,000. Flexsource argued that Rutkowski’s hourly rate included a Sunday premium and matched the terms of comparable employees directly employed by Musgrave.
The Labour Court found that the comparable employees’ Sunday premium and basic pay were in line with Rutkowski’s pay under the collective agreement. It therefore found no breach of section 14 of the Organisation of Working Time Act 1997 and overturned the Rights Commissioner’s decision. Rutkowski did not appear at the appeal hearing; the Court had been told he was abroad. Flexsource’s evidence and the collective agreement were considered in reaching the finding.