Clients often seek advice as to what employment procedures must be in place and how best their staff can be trained and educated in the use of these procedures. In a recent case an employee, despite having arrived at work admittedly under the influence of alcohol and drugs, was awarded €10,000 because fair procedures were not followed when his contract of employment was terminated.

The employee, a waiter in Bentleys restaurant, brought an unfair dismissals claim to the Employment Appeals Tribunal. During the hearing the manager of the restaurant referred to the employee as a bad time keeper, alleging that he was often thirty minutes late for work. He also told the Tribunal that the employee frequently arrived for work smelling of alcohol and having blood shot eyes because he had been socialising the night before. The employee admitted that on one occasion he arrived for work under the influence of alcohol and drugs.

On the day of the dismissal the manager phoned the employee as he was late for work and the restaurant was particularly busy. Three days previously the employee had phoned in sick to work but had not told the manager when he would be fit to return. The manager was conscious that the other staff were “picking up the slack”. He felt the employee was “taking the mick” and thought that he had “gone on a bender”. The manager told the employee that if he did not come in now, he was never to come in. The employee did not return to work. The manager admitted that he was aware that there were procedures in place but that he had not followed them when he dismissed the employee.

The Tribunal decided that the employee had been unfairly dismissed because fair procedures were not followed and awarded him €10,000 compensation despite noting that the employee had substantially contributed to his own dismissal.

The case highlights the necessity of employers having employment policies in place. Such policies should preferably be contained in staff handbooks and communicated to all staff. Above all, fair procedures must be followed when terminating an employee’s contract of employment.