Luas operator, Transdev fired a ticket inspector after he pinned a passenger's legs to the ground and knelt on them for around 10 minutes.
The incident involving the young male passenger from September 2019 was filmed by another passenger and posted on Facebook where it was viewed more than 14,000 times.
Now, Workplace Relations Commission (WRC) Adjudication Officer, Maria Kelly has dismissed the ticket inspector’s claim for unfair dismissal.
In her ruling, Ms Kelly found that the decision by Transdev Dublin Light Rail to dismiss the Revenue Protection Officer’s (RPO) was within the band of reasonable responses available to the employer.
Unpaid fare
The altercation over an alleged unpaid fare took place during rush hour at Bluebell Luas tram-stop in Drimnagh on the Luas Red Line on Friday, September 27th 2019.
The RPO was suspended following the incident and dismissed on October 29th 2019 for gross misconduct.
In her findings, Ms Kelly said: "The passenger was restrained on the ground, in public view, for up to 10 minutes. That is a long time for anyone to be restrained on the ground.
"The role of an RPO is to check passenger tickets, and they are not authorised to apply physical restraint to passengers.”
Ms Kelly said the RPO “was trained to manage conflict situations, and he did not follow the correct procedure on the day in question”.
She stated that while the RPO was not the instigator of the incident “he participated in restraining the passenger on the ground for a prolonged period”.
Flashpoint
Ms Kelly - who viewed Transdev CCTV footage and audio tapes of the incident - said that the RPO claims he acted in the passenger’s interest to prevent harm to the passenger's legs.
However, Ms Kelly stated that the RPO “may have been well-intentioned in going to assist a colleague, but the passenger was restrained on the ground for close to 10 minutes before security staff arrived”.
She said: "The issue with the passenger concerned payment of a fare, it did not arise from any disruption or violence. The incident took place in daylight and in view of members of the public and other passengers.”
The flashpoint arose when the RPO became involved in an incident that had started when another RPO received a document from a passenger.
The passenger tried to take back his document and was then forced to the ground and restrained there by the other RPO.
The employee before the WRC joined the other RPO in restraining the passenger, and he pinned the passenger’s legs to the ground and knelt on them for approximately 10 minutes.
The other RPO involved in the incident was unavailable to comment as he has been on sick leave since immediately after the incident.
Employer into disrepute
The company stated that the RPO was dismissed on the grounds of bringing the employer into disrepute.
Transdev argued that the dismissal of the employee was fair and that the sanction was proportionate. The company also pointed out that the RPO was trained in conflict management and was trained to de-escalate conflict situations and walk away from threatening situations.
The RPO was represented by SIPTU in the case and SIPTU argued that the sanction of dismissal was disproportionate and severe in all the circumstances.
SIPTU argued that the RPO attempted to de-escalate a scuffle between a work colleague and a passenger and protect a passenger from a dangerous situation.
The RPO - employed in the role by Transdev since November 2018 - argued that he had acted in good faith to prevent injury to an individual, his colleague and himself.
Compensation
The man was seeking reinstatement to his position and compensation for his loss of earnings.
SIPTU argued that the dismissal was severe and was unfairly influenced by the social media footage.
The union also agreed that the decision to dismiss the employee was unfair and in breach of fair procedures.
Ms Kelly found that the RPO was not denied fair procedures or natural justice in the investigation or the disciplinary hearings.
