Courts / Galway / Report
Office worker made redundant for complaining about builders cutting hole in roof over her desk wins €20k
Summary
Patricia Higgins, a part‑time office worker at Cruinniú Bia Ltd, was made redundant after she complained that a tradesman was cutting a hole in the roof above her desk with an angle grinder. Higgins had worked for the company for 14 years, returning from maternity leave in 2017. In May 2022 she reported to a new desk, but a tradesman began cutting a skylight above her. She stayed in place, later moving her equipment each time she was told to relocate. Higgins wrote a health and safety complaint, alleging risk and harassment, and agreed to investigate it formally in July. On 8 August 2022 she was informed of redundancy with no appeal mechanism. The Workplace Relations Commission found the company had breached the Safety, Health and Welfare at Work Act 2005 and the Protection of Employees (Part‑Time Work) Act 2001, awarding her €20,000 in compensation for penalisation and unequal treatment.
Who, what, where, when and why
What: Report matter: Office worker made redundant for complaining about builders cutting hole in roof over her desk wins €20k. Procedural stage: hearing_or_decision
When:
- September 2022 Other
- April 2022 Other
- 30 May 2022 Other
- June 2022 Other
- 19 July Incident
- 8 August 2022 Other
- 2025-03-13 Publication
Why: The adjudicator wrote that without objective justification, Ms Higgins had been treated "differently than a comparable full-time worker because of her status as a part-time worker". CNI source report
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