The company secretary of a motor-factoring company who was dismissed from her other position as group manager has secured a High Court order preventing implementation of the dismissal.
Ms Anne Williams also obtained yesterday an interim order restraining Motor World Limited, with registered offices at Regal House, Stratford-upon-Avon, Warwickshire, from interfering with her contractual relations with Motor Store Ltd, with registered offices at Kilcruttin Centre, Tullamore, Co Offaly.
Motor Store Ltd, which sells motoring after-care products, has 21 retail outlets throughout Ireland in which it employs 70 people. It is a subsidiary of the British company. Both companies were named as defendants. In an affidavit, Ms Williams said she was on a £45,000 salary with a profit-related bonus. Since being appointed group manager, sales had increased from £2.8 million in the year to June 1997 to more than £5 million in the year to June 1999.
At the end of a meeting in Stratford on May 14th, 1999, she was informed she was being suspended pending investigation of her alleged failure to comply with a reasonable management request.
She was not provided with details of the allegation while her suspension was imposed without giving her any opportunity of challenging it or confronting her accusers. She was purportedly suspended by a Mr Mousell, managing director of the British company, but he had no lawful authority to suspend her since she was employed by the Irish company, she said. She believed the British company had no contractual or other entitlements to suspend her.
She refused to attend a formal disciplinary hearing on May 21st in Stratford because she believed the matter had been pre-judged by Mr Mousell, that there was no substance to the allegations against her and that her suspension was improper.
She was summoned to attend a disciplinary hearing on June 1st which was again to be conducted by Mr Mousell. Her solicitors wrote back saying she would attend a properly constituted meeting provided Mr Mousell had no hand, act or part in it. She received a letter on June 1st purporting to dismiss her.
Granting Mr Roddy Horan, for Ms Williams, the interim injunction, Mr Justice O'Sullivan adjourned the matter to Monday. Ms Williams undertook not to attend for employment unless expressly requested to do so.