‘Adored’ worker was not unfairly dismissed

An "adored" field officer of Rural Resettlement Ireland has failed in his unfair dismissal action against the organisation.

The organisation, established by rural rights campaigner Jim Connolly, has been rehousing hundreds of urban families to the countryside for almost a quarter of a century.

Field officer with the agency, Derek McDonough lost his job in September 2012 after 18 years with the body.

Speaking at the Employment Appeals Tribunal in June, Mr McDonough said losing his job with RRI “has ruined my life. I have had to move back from Clare to Dublin.”

Mr McDonough said he was left isolated at his workplace after having a row with Mr Connolly over Mr Connolly’s daughter-in-law. Mr McDonough said Mr Connolly barely spoke to him after the row in April 2012.

Claiming ‘unfair dismissal’ from RRI, Mr McDonough said: “After we had the argument that involved his daughter-in-law, Mr Connolly told me he wouldn’t be working with me again.”

At the tribunal, Mr Connolly confirmed he told Mr McDonough during the row “if you leave the office now, you will not be working with me again’”.

Mr Connolly told the tribunal the row with Mr McDonough “was one of the worst experiences of my life with a person”.

He told Mr McDonough at the tribunal: “I have not led a sheltered life. I have been out in the workplace since the age of 18, but I can honestly say that I never heard the likes of the vitriolic attack using foul language made by any work colleague about another as I heard by you about my daughter-in-law that day.”

Mr Connolly said there is no case for unfair dismissal telling the tribunal that he made his own daughter-in-law, Ailish Connolly, and fellow office worker, Marie Burke redundant the same day as Mr McDonough.

He told the tribunal: “It was the biggest blow to my life to make these people redundant.”

Mr Connolly said he established RRI more than 24 years ago and has been involved in the resettlement of 750 urban families to rural locations around Ireland.

However, he said that, in 2012, RRI had no choice but to make the three

redundant due to serious cuts in government funding.

Mr Connolly said: “If the redundancies weren’t made, the organisation would have been insolvent in six weeks. We were running out of money. There was no question that the employment of the three could continue. We were dealing with a financial hurricane.”

Mr Connolly said he continues to work for RRI in an unpaid voluntary role with one office worker working one day per week.

In her evidence, Ailish Connolly said: “I know Jim is my father-in-law, but he was always a wonderful employer, very communicative and never had any secrets. We adored Derek. He was our friend.

“On the week before we lost our jobs, we all got him a watch to celebrate his birthday even though all of us were on reduced wages.

“We knew there was no option about the job losses and it was the hardest thing for Jim to let Derek, myself, and Marie go.”

Mr McDonough said he accepted that there was a genuine redundancy situation at RRI in September 2012.

In its ruling, the EAT found Mr Connolly “had not observed very strict procedures but this did not mean that the claimant’s redundancy was an unfair dismissal”.