A production operator dismissed after a physical altercation with a takeaway delivery driver has won his unfair dismissal case, with the Workplace Relations Commission (WRC) ordering his former employer to re-employ him after more than 15 months out of work.
The ruling concerns Stephen Loughran, who was dismissed by Almac Pharma Services Ireland in April 2025 following an incident outside the company’s Dundalk facility a month earlier. The dispute began after a food delivery arrived about 40 minutes late, missing the workers’ scheduled break.
According to evidence presented to the WRC, staff were unable to accept the order because they had already returned to work. Mr Loughran said the delivery driver became aggressive when this was explained. He admitted calling the driver an offensive name before the driver asked him to repeat the remark and then threw the first punch.
Mr Loughran told the tribunal he responded by grappling with the driver and punching him back. CCTV footage reviewed during the hearing showed both men engaged in a brief physical confrontation involving pushing, arm-holding and several punches. The adjudicator noted the exchange lasted about six seconds.
After the incident, Mr Loughran said he asked the driver to remain at the scene until gardaí arrived, but the driver left before officers attended.
Almac dismissed Mr Loughran for gross misconduct on April 7, 2025. Representing himself during the hearing, he told the WRC he had remained unemployed since losing his job.
The company argued that Mr Loughran escalated the confrontation by using abusive language and exceeded the limits of self-defence by continuing to strike the driver. Its disciplinary panel concluded that his actions amounted to gross misconduct justifying summary dismissal.
However, WRC adjudicator Breiffni O’Neill found both the disciplinary process and the dismissal itself to be unfair.
After reviewing the CCTV footage, O’Neill rejected the company’s claim that Mr Loughran had a realistic opportunity to walk away after the initial punch. He found the incident was one continuous, fast-moving confrontation, leaving little time for reflection or decision-making.
The adjudicator also identified several procedural failings during the disciplinary process. He criticised the concentration of responsibilities in the hands of site manager Sean Canavan, who oversaw multiple stages of the investigation and disciplinary proceedings. O’Neill also highlighted changes to the disciplinary allegations, failures to address inconsistencies in witness evidence, and findings introduced during the appeal process that had not formed part of the original disciplinary decision.
He concluded that these shortcomings deprived Mr Loughran of the fair and impartial process required under employment law.
Although O’Neill declined to order full reinstatement with back pay, stating that Mr Loughran’s conduct amounted to serious misconduct, he directed Almac Pharma Services Ireland to re-engage him as a production operator or in a comparable role within two weeks. The period since his dismissal is to be treated as an unpaid suspension.
In his ruling, the adjudicator said Mr Loughran had already paid a significant price for his actions and that the time had come for that penalty to end.
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