A former tow truck operator who requested recompense for emotional pressure following a disciplinary measure for his role in towing a vehicle containing a child has been guided to “get on with it”. His union representative contended that his client was unjustly “separated and reprimanded” as there were a handful of instances where children were subsequently found in clamped or towed vehicles, leading to public outrage. The worker insisted his peers had not been penalised like him.
The Workplace Relations Commission (WRC), having looked into the industrial grievance raised by the past employee of an anonymous “parking services company”, advised all involved parties that it is advised to move on. They also suggested the removal of the disciplinary procedure and the sanction from the worker’s files.
In July 2023, following an episode where the worker along with his associate – another tow-truck driver, removed a vehicle that had been parked unlawfully, unaware of a child in the backseat, he received a final formal warning. The WRC was informed about this instance.
The actual date and place of the event were expunged from a recommendation made public today by the tribunal under the Industrial Relations Act 1969, which was entirely anonymised. When the incident occurred, the worker had over two decades’ experience with a company that dealt with both clamping and towing of illegally parked vehicles.
At a hearing in February this year, the worker stated to the WRC that he carried out all necessary inspections before the vehicle was attached to the tow truck and taken away. Only after the car had been moved did they find a child in the backseat, the tribunal heard.
A disciplinary proceeding ensued between May 25th, 2023, and July 4th the same year, resulting in a final written warning remaining in his personal file for a duration of nine months a decision which was upheld even after an appeal. Joseph Ateb from Siptu, representing the worker’s union, claimed his client had been “unjustly treated” and “isolated and penalized [as] there had been a couple of instances where children were subsequently found in clamped and/or towed vehicles”.
“Mr Ateb stated, “The issues spurred considerable uproar among the public, both on the media networks and social platforms, causing the employer to frantically manage these public demonstrations.”
The employee contended that he and the driver had been functioning as a collective unit, yet he was unjustly targeted for disciplinary action. The harshness of the penalty had merely been “a knee-jerk reaction,” provoked by “the public judgement via media.”
WRC judge Christina Ryan made the final recommendation in her verdict, concluding that since the warning became ineffective in April 2024, it was now “irrelevant.”
She counselled the employee, who stepped down from his role in February, and his employer to “proceed forward.”