The Workplace Relations Commission found James Brien was not unfairly dismissed by FG Wilson Engineering Ltd after the company ended his employment by mutual agreement during the Covid-19 pandemic. Adjudication Officer Valerie Murtagh dated the decision 8 November 2021.
Brien, a mechanic and electrician who provided generator maintenance, said he was made redundant without discussion in May 2020 while the company continued similar work. He said the €18,000 statutory redundancy payment he received was too low. FG Wilson said Brien had made himself unavailable for work and agreed to a lump-sum severance payment. The company also said it continued providing an essential service and had taken on staff to cover the work.
The adjudication officer accepted that the termination was by mutual agreement and that the company had taken a conciliatory approach by making a severance payment. She found Brien’s absence from work unreasonable, while also saying the company had not handled the matter procedurally correctly. The WRC found the complaint was not well founded. The €18,000 was a statutory redundancy payment reported by Brien, not compensation awarded by the WRC.