Woman who claimed boss looked at her chest awarded €1500

A Dublin woman who claimed her boss had looked at her chest during a disciplinary hearing has been awarded €1,500, it emerged today.

Caroline Rafferty, from Greenfort Lawns in Clondalkin, took a case against the healthcare products company Virtus after she was sacked in May last year.

The Employment Appeals Tribunal said it was satisfied the dismissal had been procedurally unfair and awarded her €1,580, the equivalent of four weeks’ pay.

However, it found no evidence to substantiate her claims about the conduct of the managing director.

The tribunal had heard that the managing director was “most affronted” by the claim that he had looked at her chest during the disciplinary meeting last September.

He also denied grabbing her wrist and making disparaging remarks during a discussion about leave of absence forms.

Virtus, which is based in Lucan, is one of the largest manufacturers of pressure-reducing mattresses in the world.

Ms Rafferty told the tribunal that she had been harassed at the company since she had an accident at work in May 2001, which led to her taking a personal injury case against the company.

She was given a verbal warning in January 2003 and written warnings the following February and March. She was suspended for two days in September 2003 and three days in January last year.

The managing director of Virtus said it was the end of the line for Ms Rafferty when she refused to check her own work in the company’s studding area in May last year.

However, the tribunal heard that there had been inaccuracies in the start of the disciplinary process and that Ms Rafferty had not been given an opportunity to give her side of the story for two of the warnings.

There was also no official procedure to appeal the results of the company’s disciplinary process.