WRC rules it cannot hear Maurice Dowling’s unfair-dismissal complaint

The Workplace Relations Commission found it had no jurisdiction to hear Maurice Dowling’s unfair-dismissal complaint against Actavo (Ireland) Limited because he did not have the required year of computable service. The decision was dated 7 October 2021; the merits were not decided. Dowling, who worked as the company’s Global Director of Human Resources, argued that his service should count from when he signed his contract in July 2019. Actavo said his employment began in August 2019 and ended in May 2020, with notice paid through July. The officer did not count the period before the contract’s stated start date, when Dowling was not paid or required to work.