Labour Court recommends HSE worker accept findings of workplace investigation

The Labour Court has recommended that a worker at the HSE accept the findings of an independent investigation into a workplace incident. In a recommendation dated 11 November 2024, the Court concluded that the overall investigation process was fair and independent on balance. The worker appealed an Adjudication Officer’s recommendation that no further action be taken, arguing that the HSE had not followed the investigation’s terms of reference. The Court heard that five witness statements were not shared with the investigator because the manager who commissioned the investigation was unaware of them, and two witnesses declined to take part. It said it was impossible to know whether their participation would have changed the outcome. The Court recommended that the parties treat the matter as closed.