A Presbyterian minister `is in employ of God'

A Minister with the Presbyterian Church in Ireland does not have a contract of employment with the church and does not have a…

A Minister with the Presbyterian Church in Ireland does not have a contract of employment with the church and does not have a terrestrial employer, an Employment Appeals Tribunal was told yesterday.

The comment was made by Mr Mark Connaughton, who represented the church in its appeal against the findings of a rights commissioner in a case taken by the Rev Stanley Millen. The tribunal was told that Mr Millen, who has been the minister for Dundalk and Castlebellingham, Co Louth, since 1984, and two other ministers based in Northern Ireland, wrote to the church last year seeking a declaration that their employment be made a contract of employment.

Mr Connaughton said such a contract did not exist because of the relationship of the parties involved.

In a reply to the letter the church stated that as the men were not employees they were not entitled to the declaration. Mr Millen gets a P60 tax form but is viewed as self-employed, and contributions to the Revenue Commissioners and for social insurance are paid by him yearly.

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In a similar case that came before the British House of Lords, the opinion was given that a pastor was called and accepts the call and was therefore a servant of God and gave not only his whole work life but his whole life to this, Mr Connaughton added.

Mr Frank McDonnell, solicitor for Mr Millen, said he endorsed the decision of the rights commissioner.

Cases mentioned by Mr Connaughton that had been before other authorities were not binding in Ireland. The reality was that the church paid Mr Millen monies, and the information sought by him was a statutory obligation deemed to apply to an employer under the Employment Information Act, he added.

The chairman of the tribunal said it would issue its findings at a later date.

He suggested that both parties discuss the information that Mr Millen was seeking.