Sliderobes must pay worker replaced with intern €16k

Sliderobes Ireland Ltd has been ordered to pay almost €16,500 to a former employee after it was found the company let the person go and replaced him with an intern it had taken on under the Government’s JobBridge job activation scheme.

The Employment Appeals Tribunal was told by the former employee, Stephen Ruth, that he began working for the company in October 2012 before being dismissed in September 2014. He told the tribunal he was one of three permanent employees who were all notified in July 2014 that one of them was to be made redundant. He said all three were interviewed and Mr Ruth was subsequently made redundant.

However, he said an intern on the JobBridge scheme, who had been taken on in April 2014, was kept doing his job after he had been dismissed. In January 2015, that individual was made a permanent employee.

The tribunal said there was no appearance at its hearing by or on behalf of Sliderobes Ireland Ltd, even though the tribunal was satisfied the company was properly notified of proceedings.

“Having considered the uncontested evidence of the claimant, the tribunal is satisfied that a genuine redundancy situation did not exist at the time of the claimant’s dismissal,” it said. “It is clear that there was work available but that the respondent chose to replace the claimant with an intern on the JobBridge Scheme whom they subsequently made a permanent employee.

“The tribunal finds that the claimant was unfairly dismissed and awards him €16,497 under the Unfair Dismissals Acts.”