WRC rejects Peter O'Dwyer’s age discrimination complaint over retirement at 66

The Workplace Relations Commission rejected Peter O'Dwyer’s age discrimination complaint against Iarnrod Eireann over his compulsory retirement at 66, in a decision dated 22 January 2026. O'Dwyer said he had asked to continue working and argued his station operative role was not safety critical. The adjudicator found the correspondence showed O'Dwyer sought a letter confirming his retirement date, but did not request an extension of employment. He therefore did not establish facts supporting an inference of age discrimination. The complaint was rejected and no award was made.