A Labour councillor based in Dún Laoghaire has stepped down from her role within the party, following a ruling from the Workplace Relations Commission (WRC) which resulted in a former employee being awarded over €11,000. The ruling found that the employee’s rights had repeatedly been violated.
The Labour party only discovered the WRC’s decision against Cllr Juliet O’Connell last Friday after receiving a press enquiry concerning the issue. The party confirmed that Ms O’Connell, who had once served as their small business spokesperson, would not be standing for Labour in the upcoming local council elections.
Reacting to the findings, the party swiftly launched internal proceedings to investigate what had occurred. The party stated, “This case’s findings are entirely contrary to our perennial values and beliefs regarding the enforcement, endorsement, and enhancement of workers’ rights.”
The Commission found that Ms O’Connell had significantly undercompensated a Bolivian tailoress, who claimed she had quit her job due to the threat of deportation. The compensation amount was significantly less than that stated in a job offer letter which was utilised by the woman to apply for her work visa.
Patricia Oropeza-Vedia received back pay and compensation stemming from complaints filed under the Payment of Wages Act 1991, the Terms of Employment (Information) Act 1994, and the Organisation of Working Time Act 1997 against Juliet O’Connell Ltd, operating as The Zip Yard Dún Laoghaire.
The tribunal learned that in 2019, Ms Oropeza-Vedia arrived in Ireland with a student visa and qualifications in pattern-making, dressmaking, and interior design under her belt. Initially, she took a part-time job with Ms O’Connell’s company and eventually transitioned into a full-time position with the condition of obtaining a work permit.
Her job, labelled as “business development interior designer”, came with a base salary of €30,000 in an employment offer letter given by her employer, which Ms Oropeza-Vedia used when applying for her work permit in December 2020.
The claimant alleged during the hearing that while it was her job to visit clients’ residences to perform measurements, she was also tasked with customer service duties at the counter when she was doing alterations and creating curtains at the shop. Expressing that she felt compelled to take on the additional workload, she feared that refusal to comply might lead to the revocation of her work permit.
Last year, Ms Oropeza-Vedia’s application to renew her work visa was denied due to her Revenue record’s indication that her earnings were below the amount stipulated in her initial visa application. Consequently, she tendered her resignation on February 7, 2023 over concerns of possible deportation in case of illegal work.
Ms O’Connell, who represented herself at the hearing, claimed to have documentation that would prove the allegations were baseless, though she failed to present these during the August hearing. Despite being offered an adjournment to allow for the provision of working time records and other related documentation, Ms O’Connell declined and instead promised to provide them later to the tribunal.
Ms O’Connell later corresponded to the tribunal indicating that she was under stress due to an investigation by the Workplace Relations Commission (WRC) and had been advised against attending any subsequent hearings.
Catherine Byrne, the adjudicator, in her ruling, mentioned that despite a directive to pay €4,800 to the employee following an inspection by the WRC, no payment had been made by Ms O’Connell’s company, as Ms Oropeza-Vedia wanted the entire case adjudicated.
Ms Byrne discovered a discrepancy of €6,016 in Ms Oropeza-Vedia’s gross wage from February 2022 to February 2023. During this period, she received a weekly pay ranging from €459.26 to €480. Her annual income was €23,984, yet according to her work visa the amount due was €30,000.
Furthermore, Ms Byrne ruled that the job description provided by the worker, which described her as an interior designer, did not accurately depict the nature of her actual work within the organisation. As such, Ms Byrne awarded reparations totalling €11,417.