The Labour Court ordered Kerry County Council to pay €5,000 to each of seven seasonal workers after finding breaches of fixed-term employment rights. The determination was signed on 23 March 2015, varying and replacing the Rights Commissioner’s decisions; the Council’s cross-appeals failed.
The workers, James Walsh, Maurice Carmody, Charlie Farrelly, Richard Pollard, Tom Ahern, Michael Clifford and Tony McMahon, had sought contracts of indefinite duration with fixed annual work. The Court found they were entitled to indefinite-duration contracts, but those contracts remained seasonal, with work dependent on the Council’s staffing needs.
The Court found that the Council had restricted vacancies to permanent drivers and denied the workers IT training available to permanent staff. It found breaches of sections 10(1) and 10(3), and required future vacancies and training opportunities to be open to fixed-term workers. The €5,000 for each worker covered combined breaches of sections 9 and 10.