Worker said she was forced to quit her job with JTI (Ireland) Ltd because her bosses made no response of substance to a letter she termed a ‘cry for help’
The Irish arm of Japan Tobacco International, which sells the cigarette brands Benson & Hedges and Silk Cut, denied the claims. Photograph: Colin Keegan, Collins DublinIreland’s biggest tobacco distributor has been ordered to pay €40,000 after trying to press on with a performance improvement plan for a worker who said she was sick with the stress of the job.
Ms McGarry’s barrister Cillian McGovern, who appeared instructed by solicitor Barry Crushell, said his client had suffered “significant stress and anxiety” as a result of cutbacks in her area of work during a global restructuring plan in 2019 – leading to “burnout”. In April that year, her GP insisted strongly that she take time off, prescribed anti-anxiety medication and then “upped the dose”, she said.
The complainant was notified that she was going to be placed on a performance improvement plan in April 2022, the tribunal heard. She gave three months’ notice at the start of June 2022 and left at the end of that period, the tribunal heard. Ms Turner added that calling Ms McGarry an “inconsistent player” in the performance review that led to the PIP was “unfortunate and did not assist the situation”.