Woman sacked for reading private emails awarded €15k

A Dublin firm sacked a sales representative after she went through the private email account of a colleague.

However, the Employment Appeals Tribunal has found Michelle Fitzpatrick was unfairly dismissed by Westwood Club Ltd and has awarded her €15,000.

In the case, the company told the tribunal that Ms Fitzpatrick had scrolled through the private email account of a work colleague and a company log showed that 75 emails were viewed/printed in a six-minute period on August 6, 2012, while her colleague was out of the office.