Two workers have been dismissed by Smart Telecom for joining a union, the Communication Workers’ Union has claimed.
The union said two Limerick-based employees attended work this morning to find the locks on their office had been changed overnight and were told by company representatives that they no longer held positions within the company.
CWU said it had written to Smart Telecom management in recent weeks requesting a meeting to discuss staff concerns but no such meeting could be agreed.
"The refusal by Smart Telecom to meet with the CWU has subsequently been referred by the Union to the Labour Relations Commission. The union believes that the dismissals without notice this morning were in response to the increasing levels of union membership within the company and is intended as a warning to other staff," the union said in a statement.
Michael Bride, head of legal affairs at the CWU said: "The action of Smart Telecom in dismissing people for joining the union is reminiscent of employers from the dark ages and is reprehensible in the extreme.
"It seems incredible that a leading company like Smart Telecom, who claim to operate within the highest levels of corporate governance, would treat members of staff in such an abysmal manner.
"The CWU’s intention is to pursue the case on behalf of the employees concerned, and their families, in order to ensure Smart Telecom do not get away with this breach of employee rights."
Labour Party spokesman on enterprise, trade and employment, Brendan Howlin, said that if the allegations were true it is "an outrageous breach of acceptable employment standards".
"Social partnership between employers, the Government, and staff is the cornerstone of industrial relations in Ireland and is unacceptable that employees are made redundant on this basis without consultation or justification," he said.
Smart Telecom could not be contacted this evening for comment. However, RTÉ has reported that the company confirmed two staff members had been given redundancy plus two weeks’ ex gratia payment. It is also reported that the company denies being made aware that either of the two workers were union representatives.