Courts / Cork / Report
Refrigeration company's submission 'particularly reprehensible', WRC finds as worker wins unfair dismissal claim
Summary
The Workplace Relations Commission adjudicator found Anglo Irish Refrigeration Co Ltd's conduct in the dismissal of former engineer Shane Guilfoyle to be "particularly reprehensible". Guilfoyle was dismissed in January 2023 after a series of complaints about a work van's lack of air‑conditioning and heat stress. He alleged that the company presented altered photos of the van and job reports, and that he was denied union representation at a disciplinary hearing where he was threatened with a gross‑misconduct charge. The adjudicator noted that the company's investigation failed to reach a factual finding and that the alleged performance issues and damage charges disappeared during the process. Guilfoyle was awarded €4,000 in compensation for unfair dismissal, the maximum in the absence of loss, and the company was ordered to pay the €1,471.57 docked from his wages and three days' pay for unpaid leave. The adjudicator rejected claims of excessive working hours.
Who, what, where, when and why
What: Report matter: Refrigeration company's submission 'particularly reprehensible', WRC finds as worker wins unfair dismissal claim. Procedural stage: charge_or_pretrial
When:
- April 2023 Other
- November 2022 Other
- December 2022 Other
- 10 January Other
- 25 January 2023 Other
- 2 February Other
- 2024-06-05 Publication
Why: He explained that he was instructed to collect a new van from the firm's head office in November 2022, only to discover the following day that his previous work van – which had contained personal belongings and tools — was "lifted" by the firm without his knowledge. CNI source report
Places mentioned
- The way
Topics
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