2 days ago
Cleaner accused of taking photos of overweight colleague awarded €12,500 for unfair dismissal
A cleaner on a ferry service who was accused of photographing a former colleague with a weight problem to make fun of her has been awarded €12,500 in compensation for unfair dismissal.
Fiona Carroll was also alleged to have used profane and demeaning language in relation to other staff members, as well as using derogatory terms to discuss a former colleague's weight.
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There was a 'mini mutiny' against Ms Carroll among ISS Facilities workers aboard a client's ferry service in early 2024, according to Patsy Doyle, an adjudication officer with the Workplace Relations Commission (WRC).
During a series of meetings with the company's operations manager, six staff members raised concerns about Ms Carroll, four of whom indicated that they wished to make formal complaints.
Ms Carroll had also been invited to a meeting, but was stood down after the operations manager ran out of time. No attempt was made to reschedule the meeting, the WRC was told.
Investigation
An investigation into the complaints was commenced and Ms Carroll was suspended from work on March 26th, 2024.
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She confirmed that she had used 'profane language' when discussing colleagues, but claimed that this had occurred in private conversation. The lack of physical evidence of a photograph meant that one of five allegations was withdrawn.
Following a disciplinary meeting on April 11th, it was decided that Ms Carroll's behaviour had amounted to gross misconduct and warranted dismissal. Lesser sanctions were considered, but the company feared that her return to work would intensify toxicity.
Ms Carroll claimed that she had been targeted by untruths from staff members who wanted her fired. She said there was a 'historical interpersonal conflict' with one colleague who had demonstrated 'challenging and aggressive behavior'.
She alleged that this colleague had 'networked' new staff members with a view to forcing her exit from the company.
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In her decision, Ms Doyle said the allegations against Ms Carroll had been 'vague' and were not underpinned by date lines or firm contextual backdrops. It was unclear who authored the allegations, she added.
An earlier letter of complaint from the colleague with whom Ms Carroll claimed to have an 'interpersonal conflict' was ultimately conflated with the allegations. This was not disclosed from the outset of the inquiry, Ms Doyle noted.
'Mini mutiny'
By failing to meet with Ms Carroll following the 'mini mutiny', the company acted in a partisan and unfair manner, the adjudication officer found, and she was not provided with detailed notice of the allegations against her.
Ms Doyle said the complainant had not helped her case by adopting a 'combative' approach of denial and personal criticisms, but suggested that she may have reacted differently if she had been presented with more robust, detailed allegations.
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Ms Doyle found evidence of procedural unfairness on the part of the employer, which she described as 'chilling'. The earlier complaint by a colleague had been withheld from Ms Carroll, and her suspension was also 'punitive'.
The rush to dismissal rather than taking corrective action to 'mark the cards' of all staff in relation to challenging behaviour was unreasonable, the adjudication officer found.
She concluded that Ms Carroll had been unfairly dismissed, but said the cleaner had significantly contributed to her dismissal by confining her responses to personal criticisms.
She ordered ISS Facilities to pay compensation of €12,5000 to the complainant, and recommended that the company develop a policy for intra-colleague complaints that emphasises an informal approach in the first instance.
