The Workplace Relations Commission awarded Iulia Cupeti €1,960 in compensation after finding that Cos Clubs Afterschool Centre unfairly dismissed her. The decision was dated 10 February 2025.
The centre said Cupeti committed gross misconduct by supervising 24 children alone on a school bus, contrary to its policy and guidance. Cupeti said the centre was short staffed and that a manager had initially told her the school run was fine.
The adjudicator found she had not been given a proper disciplinary meeting or a chance to answer the case, and that no substantive investigation was shown. The centre accepted the bullying allegations in the dismissal letter had not been proven and that Cupeti was not formally invited to the dismissal meeting. Cupeti found alternative work at a similar rate of pay two weeks after her dismissal, leaving minimal financial loss.