Latest news with #Fenlon
Irish Examiner
07-07-2025
- Sport
- Irish Examiner
Bohemians chief scout Henderson awarded €26,000 for ‘sham redundancy'
David Henderson has been awarded the maximum compensation of two years' salary after the Workplace Relations Commission ruled his dismissal by Bohemians amounted to a 'sham redundancy'. The former club goalkeeper was sacked as chief scout last November by director of football Pat Fenlon on the orders of the board despite the club President Matt Devaney being unable to produce any meeting minutes at the hearing in May. Adjudication Officer Christina Ryan rejected the club's redundancy grounds of budgetary cutbacks, concluding the treatment of Henderson was 'shocking'. In awarding the maximum 104 weeks of salary in damages for unfair dismissal, totalling €26,000, she said: 'I find that the respondent (Bohemians) showed a cavalier disregard for due process and an unmitigated disregard for the law. 'I find that the dismissal of the complainant was nothing more than a sham redundancy carried out in a ruthless and dishonest manner without a single thought for the personal damage the respondent was inflicting on the complainant.' Read More FAI seek to push out hearing before Sports Committee on handling of historical abuse claims Attempts to resolve the dispute in the run-up to the hearing on May 13 failed. 'All I requested from the club was an apology for my reputation being tarnished,' said Henderson. 'That would have averted the case because this wasn't about money.' The WRC was particularly critical of how alleged historical complaints formed part of the reasoning for Fenlon being instructed to 'get rid of' his staff member. When Fenlon relayed the board decision to Henderson on November 30, 2024, a letter of complaint was cited. The board refused Henderson's request to view the letter, claiming the complaints were lodged verbally to the board on the condition of anonymity. 'The director of football went on to detail 'the other issues', which can only be described as issues of misconduct,' outlined the adjudication officer in her conclusion. 'It was accepted by the respondent's President (that these) went uninvestigated and were uncorroborated. Astonishingly, when questioned by the Adjudication Officer the respondent's President confirmed in evidence that no letter of complaint ever existed. 'Taking into consideration the evidence of the respondent's President and the complainant and the documentation furnished to the WRC, I find that these allegations were a gross fabrication designed to, for whatever reason, get rid of the complainant. 'I therefore find that there was no evidence before the WRC to support the respondent's contention that a genuine redundancy situation existed.' Henderson comes from the famous goalkeeping dynasty, son of the late Paddy and brother of fellow netminders Stephen and Wayne. His nephew, Stephen junior, also played in the English Championship. He and Fenlon were former teammates, firstly at St Patrick's Athletic where they won the 1990 title under Brian Kerr, and Bohemians. His post-playing career primarily entailed supporting Fenlon in his various managerial jobs in Ireland and Scotland. He also operated as the Irish scout for Aston Villa. Henderson didn't apportion blame to Fenlon in his submission. 'This situation has severely impacted my ability to continue working within football, a sport to which I have dedicated over 50 years,' said the 65-year-old. 'The reputational damage has also resulted in a significant loss of earnings and career opportunities, both immediate and long-term. I am now perceived as someone who has been subject to safeguarding concerns, despite there being no formal complaint or evidence to justify such claims.' He represented himself at Lansdowne House, thanking committee members of the ex-professional players body for flanking him. The Adjudication Officer also expressed her dismay at the club representative's unawareness of Henderson's functions. Rather than merely recruitment, it had expanded to 'multi-faceted', including women's first team coach, chief scout for the academy and liaison with the respondent's partner club, St Kevin's Boys. His scouting brief extended beyond the traditional remit of the national league underage circuit. He identified Rhys Byrne playing for Crumlin United in the Dublin District league, the teenager whose winner at Shamrock Rovers in April acted as the catalyst for the first-team's revival. They are currently joint third in the table, 11 points off leaders Shamrock Rovers but with two games in hand to contest this month. Bohemians have 42 days in which to appeal the decision to the Labour Court, should they choose to.
CBC
07-04-2025
- Health
- CBC
'If we close, people die': Rural Ontario hospitals await ER staffing certainty
Rural and northern Ontario hospitals are anxiously awaiting word from the provincial government on a program that helps them keep emergency rooms open, after it ended last month. Health Minister Sylvia Jones' office has said it is working on a permanent solution after the temporary program expired, but in the meantime the people who work to keep ERs open are concerned about filling those shifts. "Because we're so short-staffed, we cannot run a 24-hour emergency department without outside physician support," said Ann Fenlon, the medical recruitment and retention co-ordinator at Lady Dunn Health Centre in Wawa, Ont. The northern Ontario community is supposed to have seven doctors who provide both family and emergency medicine, but they currently have three, Fenlon said. They have not had to close their ER, but they have come close, she said. "We're 240 kilometres away from the next hospital," Fenlon said. "If we close, people die." The Temporary Locum Program pays doctors an incentive to fill emergency department shifts -- with most of those physicians coming from other, more urban parts of the province -- to help hospitals in more isolated areas on a locum, or temporary, basis. Ontario first established it as a temporary program during the COVID-19 pandemic, but amid broader physician staffing challenges the rural and northern hospitals have come to rely on it. The Ontario Medical Association's emergency medicine section chair suggested in a recent memo to emergency department leads that staff at several hospitals have been expressing concerns about the current limbo. "The section is acutely aware of the impact the end of this program will have on staffing stability of emergency departments across the province," Angela Marrocco wrote. "We have done everything we can to emphasize this reality to the Ministry of OMA is continuing to pursue ways to mitigate any negative impacts related to timing between expiry of TLP and implementation of a permanent model." Province working on a permanent program A spokesperson for Jones said the goal has always been a permanent program, and the ministry is currently in negotiations with the OMA. "Hospitals can continue to schedule physician coverage as required as we work with the Ontario Medical Association to transition the temporary locum program into a permanent program through the new Physician Services Agreement," Hannah Jensen said. But the question is not whether hospitals can continue to try to book doctors on a locum basis, said Melanie Goulet, recruitment co-ordinator for health professionals at Notre-Dame Hospital in Hearst, Ont. It's whether there will be funding to incentivize physicians to fill those shifts. "Obviously (we'll) continue to book don't want to close our emerg," she said. But at the moment she isn't sure what will happen with the doctors currently in Hearst on a locum basis or those with shifts coming up -- will their additional pay come later, on a retroactive basis? In her region it amounts to almost $900 for a 12-hour shift, so without it she worries recruitment will be hampered. "We have one physician, she's in Hearst for almost two I don't know what to tell her," Goulet said. "So as much as they say they're clear, I don't think they actually understand the situation." The ministry also offers an Emergency Department Locum Program, but there are different criteria, and it is mostly for last-minute needs, not allowing co-ordinators to plan too far ahead, Goulet said. Both programs help ERs stay open, she said. The Temporary Locum Program has been extended several times, in at least one case months after it had already expired. Hospitals just want some certainty, Fenlon said.
CBC
07-04-2025
- Health
- CBC
'If we close, people die': Rural Ontario hospitals await ER staffing certainty
Rural and northern Ontario hospitals are anxiously awaiting word from the provincial government on a program that helps them keep emergency rooms open, after it ended last month. Health Minister Sylvia Jones' office has said it is working on a permanent solution after the temporary program expired, but in the meantime the people who work to keep ERs open are concerned about filling those shifts. "Because we're so short-staffed, we cannot run a 24-hour emergency department without outside physician support," said Ann Fenlon, the medical recruitment and retention co-ordinator at Lady Dunn Health Centre in Wawa, Ont. The northern Ontario community is supposed to have seven doctors who provide both family and emergency medicine, but they currently have three, Fenlon said. They have not had to close their ER, but they have come close, she said. "We're 240 kilometres away from the next hospital," Fenlon said. "If we close, people die." The Temporary Locum Program pays doctors an incentive to fill emergency department shifts -- with most of those physicians coming from other, more urban parts of the province -- to help hospitals in more isolated areas on a locum, or temporary, basis. Ontario first established it as a temporary program during the COVID-19 pandemic, but amid broader physician staffing challenges the rural and northern hospitals have come to rely on it. The Ontario Medical Association's emergency medicine section chair suggested in a recent memo to emergency department leads that staff at several hospitals have been expressing concerns about the current limbo. "The section is acutely aware of the impact the end of this program will have on staffing stability of emergency departments across the province," Angela Marrocco wrote. "We have done everything we can to emphasize this reality to the Ministry of OMA is continuing to pursue ways to mitigate any negative impacts related to timing between expiry of TLP and implementation of a permanent model." Province working on a permanent program A spokesperson for Jones said the goal has always been a permanent program, and the ministry is currently in negotiations with the OMA. "Hospitals can continue to schedule physician coverage as required as we work with the Ontario Medical Association to transition the temporary locum program into a permanent program through the new Physician Services Agreement," Hannah Jensen said. But the question is not whether hospitals can continue to try to book doctors on a locum basis, said Melanie Goulet, recruitment co-ordinator for health professionals at Notre-Dame Hospital in Hearst, Ont. It's whether there will be funding to incentivize physicians to fill those shifts. "Obviously (we'll) continue to book don't want to close our emerg," she said. But at the moment she isn't sure what will happen with the doctors currently in Hearst on a locum basis or those with shifts coming up -- will their additional pay come later, on a retroactive basis? In her region it amounts to almost $900 for a 12-hour shift, so without it she worries recruitment will be hampered. "We have one physician, she's in Hearst for almost two I don't know what to tell her," Goulet said. "So as much as they say they're clear, I don't think they actually understand the situation." The ministry also offers an Emergency Department Locum Program, but there are different criteria, and it is mostly for last-minute needs, not allowing co-ordinators to plan too far ahead, Goulet said. Both programs help ERs stay open, she said. The Temporary Locum Program has been extended several times, in at least one case months after it had already expired. Hospitals just want some certainty, Fenlon said.
