Manager awarded €119k over unfair dismissal blamed on Covid-19 pandemic
WRC adjudicator,Roger McGrath said Mr Reddy was dismissed 'under the cloak' of a redundancy because he would not accept a new contract. File picture: Unsplash
A former manager has been awarded almost €119,000 after being unfairly dismissed from his job at a Dublin payroll software firm on the false basis that his position had become redundant due to the Covid-19 pandemic.
The Workplace Relations Commission (WRC) ordered Ardbrook, a computer software firm based in Cabra, to pay total compensation of €118,732 to former general manager Fintan Reddy, after ruling he had not been dismissed on the basis of a genuine redundancy as claimed by the company.
WRC adjudicator Roger McGrath said Mr Reddy was dismissed “under the cloak” of a redundancy because he would not accept a new contract.
He added: “Perhaps ‘face covering’ would be more apt a description in the circumstances.”
Ardbrook had outlined how Mr Reddy was offered a promotion in June 2019 which would involve responsibility for driving new business but there were issues over agreeing a contract.
However, the company informed Mr Reddy at a meeting on April 28, 2020, that his role was being made redundant due to the lack of new business being generated.
The company also pointed out that remote working meant the need for someone to oversee the day-to-day running of the office had become non-existent.
Ardbrook admitted it had made some procedural errors in its handling of the redundancy but denied it had not offered Mr Reddy alternative employment.
It claimed Mr Reddy turned down a “more junior” sales role.
Ardbrook told the WRC it was not obliged to explain the reasons why it had not availed of the Government’s Temporary Wage Subsidy Scheme during the pandemic.
The company claimed it was the first time it ever had to make anyone redundant but denied Mr Reddy’s redundancy was a sham.
In evidence, Mr Reddy, who joined Ardbrook in August 2011, said there was a disagreement over the remuneration for the promotion he was offered in June 2019, as he believed he was being offered less favourable terms than his existing job.
The WRC heard his average annual earnings over the previous three years were €98,620.
Mr Reddy said the Covid-19 pandemic was never cited as a reason for making his role redundant at the meeting of April 28, 2020. Instead, he claimed management did not see a future for his role as general manager in the business.
Mr Reddy said he received an e-mail from Ardbrook the following day which blamed the pandemic for his redundancy.
The claimant said Ardbrook had provided separate and distinct reasons over two consecutive days as to why he was being made redundant.
Mr Reddy said he believed he was let go because the company was unhappy with his remuneration.
He told the WRC he understood he was the only one of 45 employees at Ardbrook who were placed at risk or made redundant at the time.
Mr Reddy said he doubted a genuine redundancy existed while the selection process used to make him redundant was unfair.
The WRC heard Mr Reddy had made genuine attempts to find another job in the 18 months since being dismissed by Ardbrook and he had applied for 104 positions without success.
WRC adjudicator Roger McGrath said the explanations offered by the company for making Mr Reddy redundant were “unconvincing for several reasons”.
Mr McGrath said Ardbrook had not put forward evidence to show it was experiencing financial difficulties or that it was genuinely concerned about future sales.
He also noted the reason given by the firm for the redundancy “changed overnight” to include the pandemic.
The WRC adjudicator ruled Mr Reddy’s employment contract was “more at issue” for Ardbrook than a redundancy.
“It would seem the Covid-19 pandemic was used to bring the guillotine down on the contract negotiations,” Mr McGrath said.
The WRC ruled that Mr Reddy’s dismissal was based on his resistance to change his contract of employment rather than his job becoming redundant.
It also found the claimant’s fundamental right to fair procedures was “totally absent”.
The WRC awarded Mr Reddy an additional €3,125 after he successfully won separate claims in relation to outstanding holiday pay and commission from Ardbrook.
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