Labour Court upholds decision rejecting Brian Healy’s unpaid lay-off complaint

The Labour Court upheld the dismissal of Brian Healy’s complaint that unpaid lay-off amounted to an unlawful deduction from his wages. Its decision was dated 24 July 2024. Healy said he lost €5,000 during a ten-week lay-off and argued that he had not agreed to the contract clause allowing unpaid lay-off. Pilvine Ltd Trading As Positive Signs said the contract permitted it and that work resumed as orders and business needs allowed. The Court found the contract was in force before the lay-off and allowed the employer to place him on lay-off without pay. It concluded that no wages were due during the relevant period, so no unlawful deduction occurred.