The Labour Court allowed Eoin Sheeran’s appeal and found that G4S Secure Solutions Ltd T/A G4S penalised him by transferring him from the Cadbury site after he raised health and safety concerns. The determination was signed on 11 August 2014. The Court ordered G4S to reinstate Sheeran and make good any resulting loss of earnings, including the site allowance.
Sheeran, represented by Services Industrial Professional Technical Union, said he raised concerns about proposed rosters, including a 14-hour shift and breaks between shifts. G4S said the transfer followed his refusal to train a new officer and that his contract allowed assignment to any site. It accepted that he lost the site-specific allowance.
The Court found the transfer followed shortly after Sheeran’s safety complaint. G4S did not reasonably explain the short notice or delay in acting on the alleged refusal to train, and the training incident appeared to be a cover for the transfer.