THE HEAD of finance at Dunnes Stores has settled his High Court action against the company over allegedly being placed on “garden leave” since late last year.
Larry Howard initiated his action last month. It had been mentioned a number of times and adjourned to allow for the filing of legal documents.
Yesterday Tom Mallon, for Mr Howard, told Ms Justice Mary Laffoy he was “delighted to say” the matter had been resolved, and, on consent, the case could be adjourned for mention to a date in May.
No details of the settlement were revealed. It is understood the terms of the agreement are confidential.
In his action, Mr Howard, of New Road, Greystones, Co Wicklow, had expressed concern that Dunnes might move to dismiss him following alleged “veiled and open threats” by Dunnes chief Margaret Heffernan.
He claimed Ms Heffernan referred to him and another executive in a demeaning manner at a meeting in June 2010.
Mr Howard alleged that the attitude towards him of Ms Heffernan and other senior executives in Dunnes changed after Andrew Street, Dunnes’ then chief operations officer, left the company around December 2009 and went to its rival, Superquinn, where he is now chief executive.
Mr Howard claimed he was accused since Mr Street’s departure of being “an Andrew man”, and he believed he was treated differently for reasons which he assumed were based on some unjustified presumption that he would join Mr Street in Superquinn.
A remark by Ms Heffernan at a meeting in June 2010 that “he’s not effective” was, he believed, a reference to him. But Noel Fox had said to Ms Heffernan at the same meeting: “He is effective – he is still holding money [on suppliers]”.
Over the subsequent months, he was removed from responsibility for a significant number of functions, Mr Howard alleged.
He claimed matters came to a head on December 2nd, 2010, when Ms Heffernan phoned him about an error in the September/October 2010 VAT return which he had brought to the attention of the financial accountant and Mr Fox.
Ms Heffernan asked him to explain what this had to do with him, and also asked why Dunnes should repay the VAT if it had always been done in that way, he claimed.
He said he replied that repayment was “the right thing to do”, but Ms Heffernan became “very animated” and told him: “That is exactly why you have no future in Dunnes Stores.”
After his solicitors wrote to Ms Heffernan on December 20th, 2010, Mr Howard claimed he was asked the following day to attend a meeting with Anne Heffernan and Sharon McMahon.
He was asked to go home while issues raised by his solicitors were investigated.
On legal advice, he attended work on March 7th, at which point Anne Heffernan told him she was directing him to go home and his salary would be paid, he alleged.