Labour Court upholds €1,000 payment and re-interview for worker at Teagasc

The Labour Court upheld a €1,000 payment and a recommendation that an unnamed worker at Teagasc be given a fresh interview for a post of responsibility. The Court signed its decision on 9 October 2009. The worker said an Assistant Director’s comment on his application harmed his promotion prospects, and that the same manager’s role on a second interview panel compounded the damage. Teagasc accepted that the comment should have been discussed with him before it became part of the official record. It said a public service recruitment and promotion moratorium prevented it from appointing him within four months. The Rights Commissioner had recommended a new interview without the previous panel members and a €1,000 payment. The Labour Court upheld the re-interview recommendation, with appointment if successful when a vacancy arose, and endorsed the payment.