The Workplace Relations Commission found that Metropolitan Films International Limited penalised plasterer William Hanlon by dismissing him after he sought permanent employment, and ordered the company to pay him €25,000 compensation. The decision, dated 19 December 2023, also awarded him €5,000 for breaches involving the reasons and written explanation for his fixed-term contracts.
Hanlon said he had worked for the company and its subsidiaries since 2004, including on film and television productions at Ardmore Studios in Bray. He was laid off in June 2018 when a production ended, but was not called back after work resumed in 2019. The company argued that separate production companies employed him and that his complaint was out of time.
The adjudication officer found that Metropolitan Films International Limited was Hanlon’s employer and that his dismissal took effect on 1 December 2019, making the complaint timely. The officer found he had acquired a contract of indefinite duration, which is a permanent contract, and was penalised when his attempt to invoke that right led to his dismissal. The company was also found to have lacked objective grounds for successive fixed-term contracts and to have failed to provide a written statement explaining them.