Industrial Tribunals Northern Ireland Decisions

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You are here: BAILII >> Databases >> Industrial Tribunals Northern Ireland Decisions >> Davis v O'Neill [2009] NIIT 583_08IT (14 January 2009)
URL: http://www.bailii.org/nie/cases/NIIT/2009/00583.html
Cite as: [2009] NIIT 583_08IT, [2009] NIIT 583_8IT

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THE INDUSTRIAL TRIBUNALS

CASE REF: 583/08

CLAIMANT: Timothy Davis

RESPONDENT: Liam O’Neill

DECISION

The decision of the tribunal is that the respondent shall pay the claimant a redundancy payment in the sum of £1,395.

Constitution of Tribunal:

Chairman (Sitting Alone): Ms Bell

Appearances:

The claimant appeared in person.

The respondent was not present and was not represented.

1. The claimant complained in his claim that he had not received a redundancy payment following closure of the respondent’s business and assurance from the respondent that he would be paid.

2. No response to the claim has been accepted from the respondent in accordance with the Industrial Tribunals (Constitution and Rules of Procedure) Regulations (Northern Ireland) 2005.

ISSUE

3. The issue for the tribunal was whether the claimant was entitled to a redundancy payment.

EVIDENCE

4. The tribunal considered the claim, documentation handed in by the claimant and heard oral evidence from the claimant.

FINDINGS OF FACT

5. The claimant, born on 17 May 1954, was employed by the respondent as a registered nurse from 1 November 2003 in Antrim Coast Private Nursing Home, until the respondent decided to cease carrying on his business on 31 October 2007.

The respondent gave the claimant notice of termination of his employment by letter dated 28 September 2007.

The claimant was contracted to work 34.5 hours per week at £9.41 gross per hour.

The claimant wrote to the respondent seeking his redundancy payment by letter dated 31 October 2007 and received a response from the claimant dated 26 November 2007 assuring him that a redundancy payment would be made, the claimant had not as at the hearing date heard from the respondent since.

THE LAW

6. Article 170 of the Employment Rights (Northern Ireland) Order 1996 provides that an employer shall pay a redundancy payment to any employee of his if the employee is dismissed by the employer by reason of a redundancy.

7. Under Article 174 of the 1996 Order an employee who is dismissed shall be taken to be dismissed by reason of a redundancy if the dismissal is wholly or mainly attributable to the fact that his employer has ceased or intends to cease to carry on the business for the purposes of which the employee was employed by him, or to carry on that business in the place where the employee was so employed.

8. Article 197 of the 1996 Order sets out how the amount of a redundancy payment shall be calculated.

9. Under Article 23 of the 1996 Order as amended at the time of the claimant’s dismissal, for the purpose of calculating a redundancy payment the amount of a week’s pay shall not exceed £310.

APPLICATION OF LAW TO THE FACTS

10. The tribunal is satisfied from the claimant’s undisputed oral and documentary evidence that the claimant was dismissed by reason of redundancy the respondent having ceased to carry on his business for the purposes of which the claimant was employed on 31 October 2007. At 31 October 2007 the claimant had three complete years of employment, just falling a day short of four complete years. During the claimant’s three complete years of service he was over 41 years of age and his wages were in excess of £310, the statutory maximum figure for calculating redundancy payment. Accordingly the claimant is entitled to a redundancy payment calculated as follows:-

3 x £310 x 1.5 = £1,395

11. This is a relevant decision for the purposes of the Industrial Tribunals (Interest) Order (Northern Ireland) 1996.

Chairman:

Date and place of hearing: 17 October 2008, Belfast

Date decision recorded in register and issued to parties: