A long-serving barman at a Kilkenny GAA club who was sacked for his allegedly deteriorating work, and who was judged to have been unfairly dismissed, has been awarded €5,744 by the Employment Appeals Tribunal.
Noel Martin, who worked with Piltown GAA club from 1985 to 2010, had been given a €5,000 severance package from the club. He was awarded in further compensation an additional €5,744 by the tribunal.
Mr Martin began working with the club under a Fás scheme in 1985. He was then exclusively paid by Fás and was not an employee of the club. This changed in the early 1990s, when he was asked to work in the clubhouse bar, for which he was paid in cash by the club.
He first appeared on the club’s accounting books in the mid-1990s when he was paid by cheque (made out to cash), drawn from the club’s pitch and putt account. The secretary of the bar and complex committee admitted to the tribunal that should not have been done.
According to the secretary, Mr Martin’s work performance began to deteriorate after time, contributing to complaints and a slowdown in business at the bar.
In 2008 the committee asked Mr Martin whether he would be interested in retiring, which he turned down. In February 2010, Mr Martin was told he was to be fired. He was paid €5,000 in compensation for his service.