Criminal records could be erased

The Employment Appeals Tribunal has recommended a facility be established to allow workers to erase past criminal records committed under duress for the purpose of Garda vetting.

It follows a recent ruling by the EAT to uphold the decision of a homecare services provider to sack a female employee who failed to disclose the full extent of her past criminal convictions on a Garda vetting form.

The tribunal sympathised with the situation of Rita Donoghue, a homecare worker lost her claim for unfair dismissal by Dublin West Home Help where she had worked for eight years.