A GROUP of plasterers has been awarded over €360,000 in compensation after a tribunal found they had been unfairly dismissed by one of the country’s top property development companies.
Daniel McGeehan, Killinarden Heights, Tallaght; Glen O’Reilly, Bunting Road, Walkinstown; Charles Kennedy, Butterfield Close, Rathfarnham; Tony McEvoy, Cherrywood Avenue, Clondalkin; Denis Farrell, Glenview Park, Tallaght; John O’Malley, Monastery Walk, Clondalkin; Edward O’Malley, Monastery Drive, Clondalkin, and Liam Flynn of Carriglea Downs, Firhouse were earning an average of €2,500 each a week. They were made redundant by the Carrickmines-based Park Developments in early 2008 after the property boom had peaked.
An Employment Appeals Tribunal said that clearly the company had laid off the plasterers despite the fact that there was demand for plastering work long after they had left. The remaining work had gone to a subcontractor.
In its defence, the company said it could not breach a contractual arrangement with subcontractors.
The tribunal noted that some of the plasterers had given more than 20 years of service to Park and that “no consideration was given to temporary lay-off or short-week options or indeed to the options of renegotiating the contract with the subcontractor who it seems went on to work a further contract” at an affordable housing site.
In a determination that has just become available, the tribunal found Park had not demonstrated the decision to make the men redundant was fair in all the circumstances.
It said Park “went for the easier option without having regard to the service it had received” from the eight men.
The tribunal awarded the men sums ranging from €58,300 to €34,000 for unfair dismissal. Substantial redundancy payments already made to the plasterers were subtracted from their awards.
Park’s construction director told the tribunal that the plasterers were employed on the Gallops development in Sandyford and in Tallaght.
In 2006 it was difficult to recruit labour and in January 2007, subcontracting began on a complex of 173 apartments.
Due to the downturn, he was requested to reduce numbers and prices were reduced by 25 per cent. The apartments are now completed but remain unsold.
In 2006, Park had land and a number of developments in the pipeline but they have been postponed and will not start before 2010.
Park currently has a development of 43 one-bedroom social housing apartments and it is expected that these will be completed by February 2010.
Park was established in the 1960s and became a major house builder before also branching in to commercial and business developments. It has undertaken about 40 major residential schemes in Dublin.
More recent developments include Hanover Quay in the docklands, Mount St Anne’s, Milltown, the Leopardstown Shopping Centre, Woodpark, Ballinteer and Ticknock Hill, Sandyford.