The Labour Court (the “Court”) has recently issued its decision in Saint John of God Community Services...

The Labour Court (the “Court”) has recently issued its decision in Saint John of God Community Services CLG and Ms Olapeju Oyegoke [UDD2415]. This was an appeal by the employer (hereinafter the ���Respondent”) of the Workplace Relations Commission (“WRC”) decision that the Respondent’s refusal to allow Ms Oyegoke (the “Complainant”) to retract her resignation amounted to an unfair dismissal, due to the special circumstances under which it was tendered. In his decision in that case (A Social Care Worker v A Social Services Charity ADJ-00039351), the Adjudicator, Brian Dalton, ordered reinstatement of the Complainant to her role. Our newsletter article on the WRC decision can be found here.

Facts: The Complainant had been a good employee with the Respondent since 24th August 2004 until she handed in her resignation on 27th January 2022. The Complainant had resisted an internal transfer, having suffered the sudden death of her teenage daughter. The Complainant provided a medical certificate in support of her position, and requested a referral to Occupational Health. However, the Respondent did not send her to Occupational Health, and instead sought to rely on a risk assessment carried out by a Social Care Leader, a copy of which was not provided to the Complainant. The Respondent sought to progress the internal move. The Complainant was under the care of medical health professionals and was on certified sick leave at the time of her resignation. Her resignation was accepted by the Respondent on the same day it was tendered. A number of days later, and on receipt of medical advice, she sought to retract her resignation. The Respondent would not allow this. It cited the fact that it was not its policy to allow resignations to be withdrawn. The Complainant made a further request to retract her resignation, setting out her medical issues in detail. This was again refused, but the Complainant was offered a role on the Respondent’s relief panel.

Decision: The Court considered the decisions in KWIK-Fit (GB) Ltd v Lineham [1992] IRLR 156 and Keane v Western Health Board (UD940/1988) in considering whether or not “special circumstances” existed, requiring the Respondent to permit the Complainant to retract her resignation. The Court was satisfied that special circumstances are not limited to so-called “heat of the moment” resignations.

The Court noted that the Keane decision took into account the Complainant’s state of mind at the time of the resignation. The Court considered the sequence of events, noting that the Complainant had an “unblemished career”. The Court found that at the very least the Respondent should have enquired as to why the proposed transfer had such a drastic impact on the Complainant.

The Court upheld the Adjudicator’s decision that the Complainant was unfairly dismissed, and agreed that reinstatement was the most appropriate redress in the circumstances. In coming to this decision, the Court considered the Complainant’s length of service, and noted that reinstatement would not create any hardship for the Respondent, particularly given that they were willing to have her return to their relief panel. It is interesting that although the Complainant indicated in the WRC that she was no longer interested in returning to work for the Respondent, the redress sought in the Labour Court was reinstatement.

Takeaway for Employers: This decision highlights the need for employers to be mindful of the circumstances surrounding an employee’s resignation, especially if they are long serving. Where an employee seeks to retract his/her resignation, it is advisable for an employer to give proper consideration to the request and whether or not “special circumstances” exist. A blanket refusal to permit an employee to retract his/her resignation may result in a successful unfair dismissal claim and an order for reinstatement, re-engagement, or compensation.  Each case must be considered on its own merits and rigid adherence to blanket policies should be avoided.

Link - https://www.workplacerelations.ie/en/cases/2024/april/udd2415.html

Authors – Nicola MacCarthy and Jenny Wakely