A farm labourer, Edward Lattich, has been awarded almost €23,000 for employment rights violations by the Workplace Relations Commission (WRC).

Lattich said he was employed as a farm labourer by Mount Temple Dairy Farm Limited near Moate, Co. Westmeath in December 2024, wishing to gain experience in the dairy sector.

In its findings, the WRC stated that in the 19 weeks Lattich worked for the respondent, his average weekly hours came to approximately 77 hours.

Lattich said in his submission that he was paid a rate of €2,500 per month, regardless of hours worked.

He submitted that he routinely worked about 14 hours/day, and he did not normally "receive time to take breaks and spent most of his time on the respondent's premises completing various assigned tasks".

Calving season

According to Lattich, in January 2025, his working hours increased "in preparation for and during the busy calving season", and he generally worked every day of the week.

Adjudicator Brian Dolan, said that from documents provided by the complainant, which "are impressive in their detail and precision", it was determined that Lattich was underpaid by €10,420.13 in wages alone under the Payment of Wages Act.

Other amounts in the WRC findings included awards for:

Unpaid Sunday premium;
Unpaid public holiday entitlement;
Not receiving a daily reset period in accordance with the Act;
Not receiving a weekly rest period under the Organisation of Working Time Act; and
Outstanding annual leave on the termination of his employment.

Compensation was also awarded for the breach of these Acts

In his submission, Lattich corroborated his working hours, where possible, with photographs taken in the course of his duties.

"In this regard, the complainant submitted that he worked in excess of 192 hours in December 2024, in excess of 353 hours in January 2025, in excess of 357 hours in February 2025, in excess of 366 hours in March 2025, and in excess of 199 hours in April 2025", according to the WRC.

In his submission, Kelvin Hyland of Peninsula Business Services Ireland, acting on behalf of the respondent, disputed Lattich's calculations "regarding the extent of the underpayment of wages, as well as the finish times submitted by him".

According to Hyland, the respondent's accountant was instructed to calculate the sums owed to Lattich based on the national minimum wage and their record of hours worked.

He said that once these rates were applied, the gross amount owed to Lattich was €6,895.07

Scathing

However, the WRC was particularly scathing about the respondent's failure to maintain accurate working time records.

"In this particular case, no working time records of any description were maintained, and the burden of proof consequently fell upon the respondent to demonstrate accurate working hours," the WRC findings said.

In its findings, the WRC stated that the: "Respondent essentially conceded liability under the complaint that [Lattich] was not paid in accordance with the National Minimum Wage Act.

"In this regard, they submitted that the arrangement with the complainant was that he would work additional hours during the busier calving season, and that over the course of his employment this would even out during the quieter periods of the farming calendar.

"Notwithstanding the foregoing, the respondent remained under a legal obligation to pay the complainant at least the national minimum wage for each hour worked in the course of his employment.

"They accepted that they failed to do so, and having regard to the foregoing, the complaint is deemed to be well founded," the adjudicator said in his findings.