WRC says it cannot hear unfair dismissal complaint by statutory apprentice

The Workplace Relations Commission found it had no jurisdiction to consider Thomas Renehan’s unfair dismissal complaint against Killaree Lighting Services Ltd. The decision was dated 13 July 2026. Renehan argued that his service with a sister company counted toward the one-year service requirement; Killaree Lighting Services Ltd said the companies were separate and employed him from 31 March 2025. The WRC made no finding on continuity of service. It found his dismissal on 15 May 2025 occurred within six months of SOLAS approving his statutory apprentice registration on 29 January 2025, so the Unfair Dismissals Act did not apply and it could not consider the complaint’s merits.