Courts / Ireland / Report

Man fails on gender discrimination pay claim but is awarded €40k for unfair dismissal

Summary

Pádraig McMahon, a technical support manager at Opentext Ireland Limited, lost his job in a redundancy scheme in June 2020. He argued that the selection process was unfair, citing a lack of transparency and no prior warning that his role was at risk. The Workplace Relations Commission found that while a valid redundancy situation existed, the process was not carried out fairly or transparently, and that alternatives to redundancy were not considered. Consequently, Mr McMahon was awarded a compensatory sum of €41,400, equivalent to 11 months' remuneration less the statutory redundancy payment. His separate claims of gender‑based pay discrimination, disability discrimination and victimisation were dismissed because he failed to establish a prima facie case in each. The adjudicating officer noted that the company's redundancy matrix was vague and did not meet the required standard of transparency.

Who, what, where, when and why

What: Report matter: Man fails on gender discrimination pay claim but is awarded €40k for unfair dismissal. Charges or matters: unfair dismissal; gender discrimination; disability discrimination. Procedural stage: hearing_or_decision

When:

• November 2014 Other
• June 2020 Other
• September 2019 Other
• January 2020 Other
• May 2020 Other
• 2023-01-26 Publication

Case subjects

Topics

Stage Hearing Or Decision

Read the original CNI report