Labour Court recommends Campbell Catering re-engage worker dismissed during probation

In 1992, the Labour Court recommended that Campbell Catering Limited re-engage a general assistant it had dismissed during her probationary period. The recommendation, dated 31 August 1992, called for her employment record to start afresh with a new six-month probation. The worker left the premises during a tea break without permission and did not report off duty. Campbell Catering treated this as serious misconduct and dismissed her. The Services Industrial Professional Technical Union appealed a Rights Commissioner's recommendation that the dismissal was not unfair and that the company pay her £150. The Court accepted the company was entitled to dismiss her, but said re-engagement was appropriate given the nature of the offence and that she had not been told of other concerns about her work. The earlier £150 recommendation was not part of the Labour Court's recommendation.