The Labour Court overturned a decision rejecting Stephen Kinsella’s unfair dismissal complaint and directed Boc Gases Ireland Limited to pay him €3,000 compensation. The determination was dated 9 March 2023.
Kinsella worked as a compressed gases driver and was dismissed in December 2020 after an investigation into a bald tyre on a truck he had driven and his conduct during the process. BOC said he had failed to follow safety procedures and cooperate with the investigation, and that it had lost trust in him. Kinsella disputed the evidence connecting him to the tyre and argued that the disciplinary process was unfair.
The Court found that procedural problems, considered together, meant BOC had not proved the dismissal was fair. Among them, the decision-maker was also an important witness, and Kinsella had no earlier opportunity to question him about his evidence on the tyre. The Court found Kinsella had been unfairly dismissed and overturned the earlier decision.
It chose compensation rather than reinstatement or re-engagement because it did not consider restoring the working relationship to be in the parties’ interests. The Court also took account of Kinsella’s considerable contribution to his dismissal and found his efforts to limit his financial loss fell well short of what was required when setting compensation at €3,000.