The Labour Court upheld a finding that Debenhams Retail (Ireland) Limited breached its duty to consult workers over planned collective redundancies, awarding shop assistant Jane Crowe four weeks’ pay. The decision was dated 10 April 2024.
Crowe, who had worked for the company since 1996, argued that consultation should have started earlier and that workers lacked information to propose alternatives. Debenhams said consultation began when it sent information to the union on 14 April 2020, with meetings following over Easter.
The Court found consultation began at a meeting on 17 April, after provisional liquidators had been appointed. It said the company should have started consultation on 9 April, when its board decided the business would cease trading, and that the delay narrowed the options for agreement. The Court found a breach of section 9 of the Protection of Employment Act 1977 and upheld the adjudication officer’s decision. Crowe’s gross weekly pay was €285, and compensation was set at four weeks’ pay.