Compensation for Unfair Dismissal Claim
Although an employee may bring their employer before the Workplace Relations Commission in respect of a complaint under the Unfair Dismissals Act, even if they are successful, an Adjudication Officer has, within their remit, the power to award a successful complainant no compensation depending on the circumstances.
In A Diver -V- A Limited Company (ADJ00018129), the Adjudication Officer in this matter, Ms Niamh O’Carroll Kelly BL, decided to award the complainant no compensation despite bringing a well founded case of unfair dismissal.
Counterclaim by Employer
In summary, the complainant was provided with approximately €10,000 worth of diver training. He was asked to undertake a very important and time sensitive task on behalf of the respondent company. When he arrived to undertake the task, he demanded more pay than had been agreed based on a previous rate he had been given in error. The manager and owner of the respondent company noted that the previous rate paid to him was an administrative error and was never agreed between the parties. He further noted that he had spent a considerable amount of money upskilling the complainant and now felt betrayed that the complainant was effectively trying to “blackmail” him as he knew the importance of this particular job, to the respondent company.
Summary Dismissal
The owner of the respondent company told the complainant “you’re finished”. The complainant contended that he was effectively dismissed from that moment. The owner of the respondent company later emailed the complainant to inform him that he was suspended pending an investigation and disciplinary process. He then invited the complainant to attend an investigatory meeting to discuss the issues before them. The complainant never attended the meeting arguing that he had already been dismissed and that there was no further issue to discuss.
He then submitted a claim seeking adjudication by the Workplace Relations Commission under the Unfair Dismissals Act.
Behaviour of the Employee
The Adjudication Officer in this matter found that there had been an absence of due process and fair procedure with respect to the manner in which the complainant was dismissed.
Notwithstanding this, she did agree with the respondent that the complainant was effectively trying to blackmail the company and therefore, despite finding that the complainant’s complaint was well founded, she decided to award him no compensation.
Further Information
For further information, please contact the author of this article, Barry Crushell.
