Foley to meet airline subcommittee

The chief executive of Aer Lingus, Mr Michael Foley, is to meet with the board subcommittee which has been asked to decide his fate.

Mr Foley yesterday handed in what his spokesman called a "lengthy and detailed submission" to the three-man committee and asked that the two sides should meet.

Lawyers for both sides were understood to be talking yesterday about a suitable date and format for the meeting. It is expected to take place next week.

A spokesman for Aer Lingus said Mr Foley had requested a meeting and the request was going to be facilitated. He had no further comment.

According to one source, Mr Foley's submission includes forceful argument that he was not guilty of any "gross misconduct". This is despite the finding of an earlier board subcommittee that Mr Foley had sexually harassed two women members of staff, including one worker-director.

The source said Mr Foley had been requested by the subcommittee to address certain questions in his submission, including whether he was guilty of gross misconduct.

Why this is so is not clear. The subcommittee has been asked to decide what action, if any, the board should take given the findings of the earlier subcommittee, which upheld the allegations made against Mr Foley. Mr Foley was also asked to address the question of whether the board should have confidence in him.

The subcommittee - made up of directors Mr Paddy Wright, Mr Chris Wall and Mr Des Richardson - is expected to report in the near future. Mr Foley was effectively suspended following the decision of the earlier subcommittee upholding the allegations.

In the event of the board deciding to take action against Mr Foley, it is thought that he could sue.

The allegations of sexual harassment were made by SIPTU worker-director Ms Joan Loughnane and head office staff member Ms Anne Lawlor.

The first subcommittee was made up of directors Dr John Keane and Ms Rose Hynes. Its 62page report is understood to have decided Mr Foley was guilty of sexual harassment in both cases. It is also understood to have found that there was no evidence to support a claim from Mr Foley that persons within the airline conspired against him.

During a High Court hearing in late May, Mr Foley, in an affadavit, alleged that Aer Lingus chairman Mr Bernie Cahill had colluded with the first investigating committee. Mr Cahill rejected the allegation.

Another claim that Ms Lawlor had been adamant that her complaint would not have been made but for a conversation she had with Mr Cahill, was rejected by Ms Lawlor in correspondence opened in court.