The Workplace Relations Commission (WRC) has ordered Autism Initiatives to pay former social care worker Aidan Fitzgibbon €12,500 in lost earnings after finding he was unfairly dismissed. Adjudication Officer Conor Stokes’s decision is dated 24 March 2025.
Fitzgibbon worked for the organisation from 8 January 2007 until his dismissal in January 2022. Autism Initiatives said it dismissed him for gross misconduct over two alleged inappropriate comments concerning service users and an alarm. Fitzgibbon argued that the dismissal was procedurally unfair and linked to his protected disclosure and trade union activities.
The WRC found the disciplinary process unfair, noting that neither Fitzgibbon nor the person who complained was interviewed during an investigation and that the allegations were put to him only at the disciplinary hearing. It was not satisfied that his dismissal resulted wholly or mainly from his union membership or a protected disclosure. Reinstatement was considered inappropriate; the award reflected lost earnings, with a reduction because he had not fully sought work.