Complainant: John Mooney (71)
Respondent: Operator of The Hairy Lemon pub, Dublin
Legislation Invoked: Employment Equality Act 1998
Outcome: €30,000 compensation for discriminatory dismissal
Date of Decision: Published August 2025
Case Summary
John Mooney, a long-serving employee of The Hairy Lemon pub in Dublin, has been awarded €30,000 by the Workplace Relations Commission (WRC) following a finding of unfair discriminatory dismissal on the grounds of age.
Mr Mooney had been employed by the pub for decades, first as a barman for 20 years, and later rehired in 2014 as a maintenance operative. In late 2023, he was informed that he would be dismissed at Christmas due to increased insurance costs attributed to his age and a contractual retirement age of 66.
Despite the employer claiming the dismissal was a redundancy, the WRC found:
- There was no redundancy payment made
- No documentation was produced to support the alleged insurance rationale
- The complainant was abruptly handed a dismissal letter with no formal process
- The company failed to demonstrate a legitimate and non-discriminatory basis for the dismissal
WRC Findings
Adjudicator Breiffni O’Neill found in favour of Mr Mooney, noting:
“The respondent failed to rebut the presumption of discrimination… and provided no documentary evidence to support its claims around insurance or redundancy.”
The decision emphasised that age-related concerns, unsupported by evidence or a structured process, do not meet the legal threshold for fair dismissal under equality law.
Mr Mooney, now 71, was deemed unlikely to find further work, and the award of €30,000 reflects the serious impact of the dismissal on his livelihood.
HR & Employer Takeaways
Mandatory Retirement Policies: These must be clearly stated, consistently applied, and objectively justified under equality law. A clause alone is not enough.
Insurance Cost Arguments: Dismissals based on insurance premiums must be backed by concrete evidence from the insurer and demonstrated as a proportionate means of achieving a legitimate aim.
Redundancy vs. Dismissal: Claiming redundancy while avoiding redundancy payments can undermine an employer’s credibility and expose them to legal challenge.
Process Matters: A fair procedure and written records are critical when managing capability concerns or potential role termination, especially with older workers.
Bloom Consultancy Commentary
This case is a timely warning to Irish employers not to make age-based employment decisions based on assumption, bias, or convenience. The WRC reinforced that any dismissal must be substantively justified and procedurally fair, especially where age may be a factor.
At Bloom Consultancy, we help organisations:
- Conduct compliant performance and retirement reviews
- Implement equality-proofed employment contracts and retirement policies
- Manage redundancy processes fairly and lawfully
This article is based on public decisions of the Workplace Relations Commission and reported case summaries from Irish media sources. It is intended as a commentary on HR compliance issues relevant to employers and HR professionals in Ireland.