Labour Court upholds disciplinary action against council bin crew

In 1999, the Labour Court rejected the Services Industrial Professional Technical Union’s appeal and upheld a Rights Commissioner’s recommendation on disciplinary action against a Dun Laoghaire/Rathdown County Council bin crew. The decision was dated 12 July 1999. The dispute followed the crew’s refusal to collect refuse at a Clonskeagh site on 4 November 1998. The union cited the crew’s long service and recurring problems with the waste there. The Council said the crew had ignored instructions and previous warnings, disrupting refuse services. The Court considered the disciplinary action reasonable in light of the crew’s conduct and earlier warnings.