Labour Court rejects union appeal over Gilbeys warehouse workers’ subsistence claim

The Labour Court rejected the Services Industrial Professional Technical Union’s appeal over two Gilbeys Of Ireland warehouse workers’ claim for lost subsistence payments. The decision, signed on 28 March 1994, upheld the Rights Commissioner’s recommendation to reject the claim. The workers had temporarily covered driver and helper duties before returning to the warehouse when an owner-driver arrangement began. Gilbeys agreed to compensate two years of lost earnings but rejected the subsistence claim. The union sought a loyalty bonus, arguing the workers had lost allowable expenses.