Employment law solicitor Richard Grogan of Richard Grogan & Associates Solicitors reminds employers of their obligations in relation to redundancies.

The Labour Court in the case of Tolerance Technologies Limited and Joe Foran UDD1638 is a case where an employee was dismissed.

The employer contended that there was a redundancy necessitated by challenges facing the business.

The Court in this case accepted that the employee’s position became redundant in October 2015. The Court however stated that the manner of the Dismissal was procedurally unfair.

The Court noted that the employee was not consulted adequately. He was not afforded representation at a meeting and was denied the opportunity to engage with the Board when he requested that facility in a situation where he was not satisfied with the termination of his employment which had been communicated to him at two meetings.

The Court decided that notwithstanding the fact of redundancy of a position the conduct of the employer in relation to the dismissal could not have been reasonable. The Court held it was therefore a dismissal. The employee had been awarded €35,000 before the Adjudication Officer. The Court reduced this to €20,000.

Again this is an important reminder for employers of the importance of fair procedures. The fact that an employee is being made redundant does not mean that they are not entitled to fair procedures. They must get fair procedures. In the event that they do not there is every likelihood that an unfair dismissal award will be made against the employer.