The Workplace Relations Commission found Fiona Norris was unfairly dismissed after an unfair redundancy process and awarded her €17,500. The decision, dated 26 July 2023, also awarded her €651.20 for the employer’s failure to provide written employment terms.
Norris worked as an accounts assistant for KCMG Engineering Limited. The company said its business had been affected by Covid-19 and that administrative work was being outsourced. Norris argued that the redundancy decision had been made before she was consulted.
The adjudicator rejected the employer’s objection that the WRC lacked jurisdiction because Norris had been married to a company director. The decision found the statutory exclusion did not apply because she did not meet the household and workplace conditions.
The WRC found the redundancy process unfair, citing concerns about its timing and the failure to ensure Norris had support at a meeting. It also considered her efforts to find new work insufficient to fully reduce her losses, while taking her parenting responsibilities into account.