Employment Law Tip of the Week – The dangers of filing a WRC claim too late
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Filing a Workplace Relations Commission (WRC) claim within the prescribed time limits is crucial to ensure a Complainant's claim or claims can be heard. For employers, it is an important preliminary point to raise at the start of the hearing, if there are concerns about a claim or claims being statute barred.
A Complainant generally has a 6-month time limit for lodging employment disputes in the WRC. However, this timeframe can be extended to a maximum of 12 months if the WRC deems there is reasonable cause for the delay.
In a recent case (see here), the Complainant brought a case under the Employment Equality Act, 1998 alleging discrimination in securing a job on the basis of her family status and gender. The Complainant was informed by the Respondent on 22 September 2021 that she was not successful in applying for a role.
The Complainant argued that she received the notification in writing on 23 September 2021, and thus, the time should run from that date. However, the Adjudication Officer (AO) disagreed, stating that the alleged breach occurred when she was verbally informed of the decision on 22 September 2021.
The Complainant applied for an extension of time as a result (to 12 months), citing lack of legal advice, being busy with a new role, and delayed receipt of relevant documents from the Respondent. The Respondent submitted that there was no reasonable cause for delay identified by the Complainant and that the Complainant was aware of the time limits and simply made a mistake in filing her claim too late.
In the circumstances, the AO agreed with the Respondent and held: “While a delay of one day is slight, I can see no reason which objectively affords an excuse for that delay and therefore cannot extend the time period".
The effect? The Complainant submitted her complaint on 22 March 2022 which was one day outside of the 6-month time limit and the WRC had no jurisdiction to consider her claim.
For employers, this serves as a reminder to check when the clock in relation to the Complainant's claim started to run and to identify when the alleged breach occurred.
For employees, missing these deadlines can lead to the dismissal of a WRC complaint or complaints, regardless of the merits, which may be a hard pill to swallow!
The above is for general guidance only and is not intended as professional advice. Advice should always be taken before acting on any of the issues identified.
Please contact Barry Walsh or Greta Siskauskaite should you require specific legal advice on this area or indeed any employment law issues.