A worker for a contracting firm at Dublin Airport who was dismissed for telling a customer services check-in representative to “f**k off” had been reinstated, the High Court heard.
However, in what a judge described as “a failure of common sense” over the use of one expletive, IT systems engineer Colm Dunne has now had to bring proceedings against the airport operator DAA because it has allegedly blocked his return to the airport and meant he had to be reassigned elsewhere.
On Tuesday, Mr Justice Brian Cregan, following a one-side only represented application by Mr Dunne’s barrister, Conor Power SC, instructed by Feran and Co Solicitors, granted permission to serve proceedings at short notice on the daa.
The judge commented: “I find it astonishing that somebody could be fired for this and I find it equally astonishing that they are withdrawing permission for him to work at the airport”.
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Mr Dunne (34) of St Laurence’s Park, Drogheda, Co Louth, had initially brought proceedings against his employer, ESP Global Services, which provides support services under contract to the airport.
He claimed his dismissal was disproportionate, that the procedures used by his employer to do so were flawed and invalid and that he had offered to personally apologise to the customer services representative involved.
The court heard the “f**k off” incident happened towards the end of a night shift in the early hours of January 27th last when Mr Dunne was fixing a faulty self-service flight check-in kiosk. An Aer Lingus customer service representative approached him to fix another kiosk when Mr Dunne said he “regrettably” told him to “go away” and “f**k off”.
Following a complaint, ESP conducted a disciplinary process and less than two months later, after an initial hearing and an appeal before senior ESP management, he was dismissed.
He then brought High Court proceedings and Mr Justice Cregan granted him an injunction restraining ESP from taking any steps to give effect to the purported dismissal.
When the case returned before the judge last week, and after he was told Mr Dunne had not been reinstated in spite of his order, he said the case would be given an early hearing and it was adjourned to Tuesday.
On Tuesday, his counsel Mr Power said the ESP case had been resolved with his client reinstated. However, he said ESP had said the daa had blocked his return to the airport and had to be reassigned elsewhere for the company.
The court heard ESP said that the DAA “has decided that your client’s conduct has fallen below what it considers an acceptable standard and has withdrawn permission for your client to work at the airport”.
Mr Power said his side was prepared to temporarily accept reassignment as a field services engineer but was now seeking to bring proceedings against the DAA for unlawful interference with his contractual and constitutional right to work at the airport.
Counsel said that before bringing the court application his solicitor had written to the DAA calling on it to immediately reinstate his clearance to work at the airport. Apart from saying it would revert by Monday, the DAA had not responded, counsel said.
Mr Justice Cregan said he was glad to hear the ESP proceedings were resolved given the “lack of proportion” over the use of an expletive. “Perhaps if you were a monk in a monastery where you had taken a vow not to utter an expletive then I would understand.
“But is there anybody in this courtroom who has not uttered an expletive in their life,” he remarked.
Mr Dunne had uttered an expletive at 5.20 in the morning, he said. “If the DAA was to apply that to everyone, they might find themselves very short staffed”, he said.
The judge noted that in settling its case, ESP had taken him back on and given him a first warning about his behaviour which was proportionate.
Given that the DA had not replied to the letter from his solicitor, the judge said he would adjourn the case until Wednesday.
“The idea that one expletive leads to two High Court cases is a complete failure of common sense,” he said.
