The Workplace Relations Commission found Marine Terminals Ltd unfairly dismissed Brian Dooley and ordered it to pay him €10,000 compensation. The decision was dated 18 April 2023.
Dooley had worked for the company for 24 years as a shift supervisor at its Dublin terminal. During a busy period, a visiting truck driver climbed onto the machine Dooley was operating. Dooley continued driving it to show the driver where to go, rather than allowing him to dismount in a crowded area. The company said this breached health and safety rules and put people at risk.
The adjudicator agreed that Dooley breached safety rules and contributed significantly to his dismissal. But she found dismissal disproportionate, given his long service and the company's failure to account for his record. The decision was outside the “band of reasonable responses”—the range of reasonable actions an employer could take—and the complaint was well founded. The adjudicator reduced compensation for Dooley's conduct and his failure to adequately limit his loss.