A State laboratory technician who was denied pension rights and access to promotion because she was on a fixed-term contract has been awarded €14,000 by the Labour Court.
The decision could help pave the way for up to 1,300 civil servants on fixed-term contracts to pursue claims for enhanced pay and conditions, including improved job security.
The court rejected an appeal by the State against the findings of a rights commissioner in the case of laboratory technician Una McArdle, taken by her union, Impact.
Ms McArdle began working for the State Laboratory in March 2000 and her contract was renewed at yearly intervals. Rights commissioner Janet Hughes found she was entitled to the same pay and conditions as a permanent civil servant doing similar work.
As an "unestablished civil servant", Ms McArdle had not been afforded the same pension rights or security of tenure as "established" permanent staff.
She was also denied access to career breaks and was excluded from a promotional competition in 2004 because she was a temporary employee.
The court upheld the rights commissioner's finding that the State had contravened the Protection of Employees (Fixed-Term Work) Act of 2003 in not allowing Ms McArdle to apply for the promotional vacancy.
Ms McArdle was awarded €10,000 in compensation in respect of her exclusion from this competition. The court said that in view of Ms McArdle's qualifications and experience, she would have had a good chance of being appointed to the promotional post had she been allowed to apply.
It therefore rejected the State's argument that the €10,000 awarded by the rights commissioner was excessive.
Ms McArdle was awarded an additional €4,000 because of the State's failure to award her a contract of indefinite duration in 2004. The State accepted that its offer of a further fixed-term contract at that time was a contravention of the 2003 Act.
Ms McArdle's case is similar to one taken by Impact on behalf of 91 civil servants on fixed-term contracts, who were awarded a total of €217,500 in compensation last year. That award was also appealed by the State to the Labour Court, which in turn referred aspects of the case to the European Court of Justice.
The European Court has been asked to advise on Impact's claim that the principal of "direct effect" applies in the cases. This would allow the civil servants to rely on EU legislation not yet fully transposed into Irish law.
The "direct effect" issue was not relevant in Ms McArdle's case, which rested solely on Irish legislation. In other respects, the case is the same as that involving the 91 civil servants.
Impact national secretary Louise O'Donnell said the Government should accept the court's finding in the State Laboratory case and drop its appeal in relation to the 91 employees.
This would save the workers concerned a lot of worry and the Irish taxpayer a lot of money, she said. "I don't understand why the State is continuing to challenge its own legal protections for temporary workers."
Asked last year how many other claims were faced, a Department of Finance spokesman said there were about 1,300 employees on fixed-term contracts across the Civil Service.
