The Workplace Relations Commission found that Lidl Ireland GMBH unfairly dismissed Sean O'Reilly over consuming a Yakult drink and sharing other products with colleagues, and ordered €4,000 compensation in a decision dated 22 August 2023.
O'Reilly worked as a customer assistant at Lidl's Gorey branch. The company said he breached its rules by taking goods before purchase and that only the store manager could authorise write-offs. O'Reilly said he thought the damaged products would be written off, admitted consuming the drink and later paid for it.
The adjudicator considered dismissal disproportionate given the low value of the goods, O'Reilly's early admission and apology, and his later payment. A final written warning would have been an adequate response, the decision said. The adjudicator also found that O'Reilly contributed to his dismissal and had not shown adequate efforts to find work and reduce his losses.