A former station manager at Mid West Radio told the High Court yesterday he could not say why he had failed to write to the National Union of Journalists or to the board of the station after being treated in a "dreadful" manner by its chief executive, Mr Paul Claffey, at a meeting in the station before Christmas 1992.
Instead, he had left the meeting in a distressed condition and gone to his doctor. He obtained medication and a medical certificate which stated that he was suffering from "stress".
Mr Henry McGlade (49) was being cross-examined at the resumed hearing of his action for damages against County Mayo Radio Ltd, with registered offices in Ballyhaunis, which carries on business as Mid West Radio.
He claims that he was systematically intimidated, bullied and subjected to sustained humiliation by Mr Claffey before eventually deciding to leave in 1995 after six years with the station. The defence denies the claims.
At an earlier hearing the court heard that Mr McGlade broke down while presenting the news "live" on February 17th, 1994.
The hearing was adjourned almost a month ago when Mr McGlade became ill overnight and was unable to resume his evidence. At the time he was under cross-examination by Mr Henry Bourke SC, for the radio station.
Yesterday Mr McGlade rejected a suggestion by Mr Bourke that he had absented himself without explanation in December 1992 and had failed to read the news on the day of the "dreadful" meeting with Mr Claffey.
He said he had been unable to read the news because he was so upset. He had handed in a medical certificate to cover his time away from the station. He did not know why he had neither gone to the NUJ nor to the board over his alleged treatment by Mr Claffey before Christmas 1992.
He agreed that taping people on the phone without their permission was a criminal offence, but said that when he taped a phone conversation he had with a woman who was in a hotel in Bundoran, Co Donegal, he had done so in order to protect himself and his job.
He had been threatened with sacking or resignation within an hour over a fax he had sent to the hotel in Bundoran on official station notepaper concerning a music performance. "You do things like that while under severe pressure", he told counsel.
The hearing continues today.