€11k for unfair dismissal after boss told woman 'as long as you are with him there is no job for you'
A retailer who allegedly warned a deli assistant that she would be fired if she didn’t end her relationship with her boyfriend has been ordered to pay €11,000 for the woman’s unfair dismissal.
The deli assistant worked at the butcher’s shop for 10 years before her summary dismissal on April 27th 2019 due to her relationship with her boyfriend.
In the lead up to the woman’s dismissal, she celebrated her birthday and at her birthday celebrations, her boyfriend and her employer had an altercation.
The woman stated that she apologised for the incident to her employer and that her partner did so also and replaced goods damaged during the altercation.
The woman stated that on April 27, 2019, she attended her workplace to collect her wages.
However, her employer told her that she would not be getting paid.
The deli assistant alleged that her employer further told her that “as long as you are with him there is no job here for you.”
The woman further alleged that her boss grabbed her by the shoulders and pushed her out the door.
The worker said that her boss later went to her home and returned the replacement goods which had been given to him by her partner.
She claimed that her boss was aggressive and shouting during this encounter.
The worker claimed that her employer did not hold any investigation into matters which gave rise to the dismissal nor did he convene any disciplinary hearing.
The woman sued for unfair dismissal at the WRC and the employer didn’t turn up for the WRC hearing.
WRC Adjudication Officer, Patricia Owens found that the deli worker’s unfair dismissal complaint was well founded.
Along with the €11,000 awarded for the unfair dismissal, Ms Owens has ordered the owner of the butcher shop to pay the former deli assistant an additional €4,400 for other workplace legislation breaches.
