The Labour Court recommended that Wexford County Council pay €1,000 to be divided among firefighters at Enniscorthy Fire Station after a dispute over telephone-cover payments. It overturned the Rights Commissioner’s recommendation. The decision was dated 8 March 2004.
The Services Industrial Professional Technical Union said 10 firefighters had systematically covered telephone duties before a centralised emergency response system ended an allowance. The council said their cover was voluntary and ad hoc, and they had received the normal drill rate. The Court found the overtime was not regular and rostered, but cited the firefighters’ cooperation over the years when recommending the payment.