Rights Commissioner Services Takes Steps to Address Increase in Claims Under the Payment of Wages Legislation

Killian O'Reilly or McDowell Purcell solicitors is concerned about the massive overload of employment claims in the system. We asked him to outline some of the issues in relation to unlawful deductions from wages, of which there are some 6000 outstanding claims. He writes:

Under the Payment of Wages Act 1991, an employer cannot lawfully make a deduction from the wages of an employee unless:

* The deduction is required by law;
* The deduction is authorised by a term in the employee’s Contract of Employment or;
* The employee had given his prior written consent to the deduction.

The act itself is quite straightforward and claims are made before one of fifteen Rights Commissioners.

As our economic