Official brings action against building union boss
A senior official of a trade union has brought High Court proceedings aimed at having the union's assets seized and its General Secretary committed to prison.
Denis Farrell, the Deputy General Secretary of the building trade union BATU is seeking to bring proceedings against BATU and its General Secretary Patrick O'Shaughnessy for their alleged failure by to comply a High Court order of March 2009 retraining them from interfering with Mr Farrell from discharging and performing his duties for BATU.
He claims that that the union and Mr O'Shaughnessy are in breach of the order arising out of their failure to provide him with financial information concerning the union that he needs to do his job.
Today at the High Court Ms Justice Mary Laffoy granted Mr Farrell, Mount Eagle Grove, Leopardstown Heights, Dublin 18, short service, on an ex parte basis, to bring motions seeking to have the union's assets seized and for the attachment and committal to prison of O'Shaughnessy. The matter was made returnable to Wednesday of next week.
Oisin Quinn SC for Mr O'Farrell told the court that in 2009 his client secured an interlocutory injunction from Mr Justice Roderick Murphy lifting his suspension from the Union and preventing the union interfering with Mr Farrell's role and duties as deputy general secretary of BATU.
The court heard that Mr Farrell was suspended by BATU after refusing to pass a picket on its own headquarters placed by employees of the union.
Following the court's order Mr Farrell returned to work, and made every effort to have a normal working relationship with Mr O'Shaughnessy.
In an affidavit Mr Farrell said that while things worked out well initially, he has been repeatedly refused access to routine financial data relating to the union. He said that he has concerns about the unions financial position.
He sought the information from Mr O'Shaughnessy however he said that he has refused to provide even the most basic of financial information to him.
He said that he has requested the financial information because it is necessary for him to do his job.
He said that the information in question was previously available to him and is still available to other BATU employees who are subordinate to him.
He said that such denials amounted to an interference with the discharge of his role as Deputy General Secretary.
Mr Farrell also stated that when he went to speak with Mr O'Shaughnessy on an unrelated matter last June he was informed that he was no longer permitted to be in the union offices unless accompanied by BATU's Assistant General Secretary.
Mr Farrell said that this was an attempt to humiliate him, undermine his position, and isolate him.
