Labour Court upholds €2,000 recommendation after Monaghan worker’s appeal fails

The Labour Court upheld a €2,000 Rights Commissioner recommendation to a sewerage caretaker employed by Monaghan Town Council after the worker’s appeal failed. The Court signed its decision on 23 September 2002. The worker, represented by the Services Industrial Professional Technical Union, had sought plumbing duties and later a Town Foreman post after missing out on Assistant Town Foreman. The Council said it had no need for a second plumber, that the worker was paid at the same rate as a plumber and that his caretaker role gave him plumbing and supervisory experience. The Rights Commissioner had recommended compensation, finding that the Council breached good faith over an agreement and damaged industrial relations procedures. The Labour Court concurred with those findings and upheld the recommendation.