A FORMER chief executive of Dublin technology firm XSIL Ltd has been awarded more than €175,000 by the Employment Appeals Tribunal for unfair dismissal.
Mechanical engineer Brian Farrell, of Greystones, Co Wicklow, had been employed as chief executive of XSIL Ltd, XSIL Corporation Ltd and XSIL Technology Ltd. As CEO of all three, he had been charged with restructuring the group and had overseen a number of redundancies.
At a tribunal hearing, Mr Farrell said he was taken by surprise on November 3rd, 2008, when an e-mail informed him that all staff, including himself, were to be temporarily laid off. He was issued with an R50 and a P45 in December of 2008, ending his employment with the three firms.
These documents, he said, were issued by a former colleague whom he did not regard as having the authority to do so. He later learned this former colleague subsequently took up his job.
Mr Farrell also became aware that many of his former colleagues continued to be employed by XSIL after he had received his P45.
He told the tribunal he had been given no notice of termination, and was owed 46 holiday days.
No representative of either XSIL Ltd, XSIL Corporation Ltd or XSIL Technology Ltd were present at the tribunal hearing.
The tribunal awarded Mr Farrell €156,000 under the Unfair Dismissals Acts, 1967 to 2007. It awarded him €10,600 in respect of his claim for holiday pay under the Organisation of Working Time Act, 1997, and €9,200 under the Minimum Notice and Terms of Employment Acts, 1973 to 2005.
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