Courts / Ireland / Report

Heineken must pay sacked worker €29k after failing to take 'rough-and-tumble' atmosphere into account

Summary

Heineken Ireland Ltd was ordered by the Workplace Relations Commission to pay €29,000 to former employee Keith Hackett after a tribunal found that the company's human resources team had failed to consider the "rough‑and‑tumble" culture of its brewhouse when concluding that Hackett had bullied and harassed two colleagues. Hackett had originally sought €90,000 for loss of earnings after being dismissed in October 2022, but the tribunal reduced the figure to €18,000, citing a lack of evidence that he had been offered alternative work or a performance bonus. The tribunal noted that the disciplinary investigations were limited by the terms of reference given by Heineken, which prevented a conclusive finding of bullying or harassment. It also found that a second investigation into alleged mishandling of confidential documents was similarly limited and did not result in findings against Hackett.

Who, what, where, when and why

What: Report matter: Heineken must pay sacked worker €29k after failing to take 'rough-and-tumble' atmosphere into account. Procedural stage: trial

When:

• October 2022 Other
• February 2022 Other
• 16 February 2022 Other
• 2015 and 2018 Other
• 2024-10-21 Publication

Case subjects

Topics

Stage Trial

Read the original CNI report