Irish Ferries faces the prospect of strike action over the dismissal of a SIPTU shop steward who allegedly raped another crew member. Ratings are to ballot on a Labour Court recommendation which has upheld a company decision to dismiss the man, and are simultaneously balloting for strike action should the recommendation be rejected.
The shop steward said last night he was "in a state of shock at the outcome. As far as I am concerned it did not reflect what happened in the court and I intend to fully pursue the matter".
The complainant was not available for comment. She has been on extended sick leave since the alleged incident took place.
The dispute dates back to an alleged rape on November 18th, 1998. The female member of the crew made her complaint to the company seven days later. The shop steward was dismissed on April 16th, 1999, after an internal company inquiry.
Feelings ran high over the company's decision, and union and management agreed to refer the dismissal to the Labour Court.
The Labour Court said it was not its function "to establish the guilt or innocence" but "its role is to investigate the circumstances surrounding the dismissal in order to establish if the employer acted fairly".
The court accepted there was a direct conflict of evidence between the shop steward and his accuser, but found the accuser's submission "more credible". Like any employer, the court said, the company "has a duty to provide its employees with a safe working environment".
It also accepted as genuine the company's concerns that informants could be endangered if it put all sources of its information in the public domain.
There was a Garda inquiry into the alleged rape, but no charges were preferred.