The Labour Court set aside a Rights Commissioner’s decision and found Anne Boyle’s complaint under the Protection of Employees (Part-Time Work) Act 2001 well founded. It awarded her €10,000 and directed the Minister for Education and Skills to include her in the National School Teachers’ Superannuation Scheme from 21 September 2008. The determination was signed on 4 July 2012.
Boyle, a part-time teacher at Hillside Park Preschool in Galway, argued that exclusion from the scheme treated her less favourably than a full-time teacher. The Board of Management of Hillside Park Preschool and the Minister for Education and Skills were cited as alternative respondents. The Board did not take part in the appeal, while the Minister denied being her employer.
The Court found the Minister was her employer because it set and funded her pay and conditions. It found that Boyle and her comparator did work of equal value, including early education; Boyle also had school administration and parent liaison duties. Although the school’s lack of recognition as a national school explained her exclusion from the scheme, the Court said that was not relevant under the Act. It limited scheme entry to September 2008 because the claim could not cover earlier periods and no application for an extension was made to the Rights Commissioner or the Court.