The High Court dismissed an application by train driver Paul Leblique to sequester Iarnród Éireann’s assets over how the company handled his return to train driving duties. The court was satisfied that the company was following an earlier order directing that a stop-short incident be dealt with under its Driver Development and Support System.
The application also sought the attachment and committal of two company managers. At the hearing, Leblique’s side conceded that the motion to attach them was not an order. The judge dealt with the remaining request for sequestration and related relief, and made no order.
In April 2017, Mr Justice Gilligan had ordered that there be no order on the balance of Leblique’s claim, but directed that the stop-short incident be handled under the company scheme. The High Court’s judgment says Leblique was reinstated to the grade of train driver and his salary restored. He had returned to work but was not driving trains while the company assessed his suitability for safety-critical duties.
The company said the assessment process considered several earlier platform overruns as well as the January 2016 stop-short incident at Tara Street. It said the process included a safety performance review and occupational psychology assessment. The psychologist’s report recommended that Leblique could be given an opportunity to return to driving, subject to extensive retraining. A supplementary report recommended that he spend six to nine months in a different role to build trust before returning to driving duties.
The court accepted that the company’s process was close to completion when Leblique brought the application. It also accepted that the psychologist had not recommended an immediate return to driving and had recommended retraining, which could begin in another role. The judge said Gilligan’s order did not expressly require Leblique to be immediately driving trains and noted the requirement to take appropriate steps to protect passenger safety.
The application was dismissed. The judgment does not order that Leblique return to driving duties or determine the company’s final decision on his suitability to do so.