The Workplace Relations Commission awarded Máiréad Hanlon €6,500 after finding that North Kerry Day Care Centre Limited Trading As Ard Cúrum unfairly dismissed her. The decision, issued by Adjudication Officer Breiffni O'Neill, was dated 11 February 2025.
Hanlon said she had indicated an intention to resign at an unspecified future date, after objecting to a change in where she was told to report for work. The employer said she had stated at a WRC hearing that she did not intend to return, and it treated this as abandonment of her job. The officer found Hanlon had not resigned and that the employer terminated her employment. The officer said a reasonable employer should have clarified her intentions before accepting a resignation; the employer wrote to accept it two days after the hearing. The employer’s representative argued any compensation should be minimal because Hanlon had not sufficiently mitigated her loss. The officer found Hanlon had not contributed to her dismissal, but had provided little evidence of mitigation.