Aer Lingus will proceed with disciplinary action against its chief executive, Mr Michael Foley, after the High Court's refusal yesterday to block the process.
Separately, the Taoiseach, Mr Ahern said he had no doubt the sale of the State airline would happen.
An Aer Lingus subcommittee board is likely to meet next week to decide on a sanction against Mr Foley, who was found guilty of two allegations of sexual harassment by a separate subcommittee.
The complaints were made by a SIPTU worker-director, Ms Joan Loughnane, and a member of the airline's head office staff, Ms Anne Lawlor. Mr Foley rejects the finding as "perverse". Outside court, he remained determined to clear his name and said the "truth" would out. He questioned why Aer Lingus had refused to grant him an appeal.
It is understood, however, that Mr Foley is now willing to see the disciplinary process to conclusion before taking further action. In court, he said he greatly feared his dismissal was imminent.
An invitation to make a verbal or written submission to the subcommittee still stands, although the subcommittee is obliged to deliver its sanction in line with the investigating subcommittee's report. The airline's position is that Mr Foley has no entitlement to an appeal because his contractual rights were fully observed in the investigation. It rejects his request for an external, independent appeal because the board is the only appropriate body to determine the fate of its chief executive.
It is understood Mr Foley is "very likely" to take further court action to uphold his right to appeal if the board refuses to grant him one after the disciplinary subcommittee disciplines him.
In Co Donegal, Mr Ahern said structural and organisational change had to take place before the company could be sold. No sale of State assets would happen without consulting the people involved, he said.
The Taoiseach's comments were made a day after it emerged that the Government's corporate advisers had been instructed to assess the possibility of a trade sale. They were previously engaged in a flotation process which is now on hold.
The Minister for Public Enterprise, Ms O'Rourke, yesterday said she could not allow a financial situation to develop that would harm the company and its workers.
She will meet the advisory team comprising Salomon Smith Barney (now Citigroup) and AIB Capital Markets on Tuesday morning before a meeting later that day with the company's trade unions.
SIPTU yesterday joined IMPACT in criticising the latest plan. "A trade sale in the current climate would be tantamount to a fire sale," it said. "The Minister has a duty to get the best value for the State's asset, but this is not the way to go." The strategic change was also condemned yesterday by Labour's public enterprise spokesman, Mr Emmett Stagg, who said Ms O'Rourke had no coherent strategy for the company.
