Cork-based plastics firm ordered to pay €45k to ex-manager over unfair redundancy selection

Francis Corrigan said he was told that there were no alternative positions available at Protech and he had to “take it or leave it”

The Workplace Relations Commission ruled that One51 Es Plastics had not followed fair procedures in making Francis Corrigan redundant from his role as product engineer manager in May 2020. File picture

A Cork-based plastics manufacturer has been ordered to pay a former senior manager €45,000 after it was found to have unfairly fired him under a redundancy process.

The Workplace Relations Commission ruled that One51 Es Plastics had not followed fair procedures in making Francis Corrigan redundant from his role as product engineer manager in May 2020.

The company which trades as Protech from its Irish base at Eastgate Business Park, Little Island, Co. Cork, is a wholly owned subsidiary of Canadian multinational, IPL Plastics.

Mr Corrigan told the WRC that he joined the company in 2003 and worked in a number of different senior roles across the business. He said a new general manager appointed in November 2019 had shown a negative attitude towards him from the outset and he felt excluded from the management team.

Mr Corrigan said other changes to his work practices during 2020 represented “a demotion” and had left him feeling “increasingly isolated.” He said he was also disappointed that after years of faithful service he was attacked by the new general manager who accused him of putting the company at serious risk over a new product even though no defects were found with it.

'Embarrassed'

The WRC heard Mr Corrigan was called to an unscheduled meeting on May 25, 2020, where he was informed that his role was considered redundant as his duties were being transferred to the firm’s headquarters in Quebec. Mr Corrigan said he was told that there were no alternative positions available and he had to “take it or leave it”.

He said he felt “ashamed” and “embarrassed” to have been escorted off the premises later that day after he had given “blood, sweat and tears” to the company. Under cross-examination by Cara Jane Walsh BL for One51 Es Plastics, Mr Corrigan acknowledged that he was aware at the time that the Cork plant was experiencing financial difficulties.

Mr Corrigan said he suffered upset and stress as a result of how he was "treated very badly" by his employer. He maintained his was not a genuine redundancy as substantive elements of his job could only be done in Cork where his functions and duties continue to be performed.

Mr Corrigan also sought over €7,000 which he claimed he was due in guaranteed annual bonuses. Ms Walsh told the WRC that the company had suffered significant financial challenges as a result of the covid-19 pandemic and Brexit which has resulted in 26 other redundancies at the Cork plant between 2020 and 2021.

She claimed Mr Corrigan had a standalone position and the only other available role at the time was “wholly unsuitable” for him. The WRC heard that Mr Corrigan had turned down a financial package which included an ex-gratia severance payment of €19,198.

Protech claims

The company’s vice-president of operations and business development disagreed with the suggestion by counsel for Mr Corrigan, John Curran BL, that the complainant was targeted because of his negative relationship with the general manager.

The company’s HR manager said the issue of fair selection for redundancy did not arise in Mr Corrigan’s case as he had a “standalone position.” Ms Walsh claimed the company had acted fairly, reasonably and in a transparent manner at all times and that Mr Corrigan only received statutory redundancy of €20,736 because he failed to sign a financial settlement agreement.

Protech also disputed Mr Corrigan’s claims that an annual bonus was guaranteed.

WRC ruling

In her ruling, WRC adjudication officer, Anne McElduff, said she was satisfied that the company was genuinely engaged in cost-cutting and staff-reduction measures because it was facing significant financial challenges.

However, Ms McElduff said the precipitous manner in which Mr Corrigan was escorted off the premises and the lack of notice about the meeting at which he was being told he was being made redundant confirmed that that the decision was a “fait accompli”. 

She said it was made irrespective of any objections or representations he would have made as there was no discussion on alternative roles that might have been available. Ms McElduff said the company’s justification for a lack of consultation with Mr Corrigan because of his standalone role was “not satisfactory.” 

The WRC said the company should have explored alternatives to redundancy given his experience and length of service “as a matter of procedural fairness”. It made no ruling on the claim that Mr Corrigan had been targeted as it noted he had not initiated any internal grievance about the matter.

The WRC did not uphold his claim for bonus payments as it was submitted outside the statutory time limit, while documents showed that such payments were also discretionary.