H.A. O’Neil Limited v Unite the Union, Patrick James Goold, William Mangan and Damian Jones [2024]
Decision Number: IESC 8 Legal Body: Irish Supreme Court
Published on: 28/03/2025
Issues Covered:
Article Authors The main content of this article was provided by the following authors.
Duncan Inverarity Former Partner & Head of Employment Law, A&L Goodbody LLP
Duncan Inverarity Former Partner & Head of Employment Law, A&L Goodbody LLP
Duncan inverarity 100x100

Duncan Inverarity is a former a partner and Head of A&L Goodbody's Employment Law group and practiced exclusively in the area of employment law and industrial relations in multiple jurisdictions. Duncan advised public and private sector employers on both contentious and non-contentious matters. He advised Board rooms across Ireland and abroad on strategic and complex employment and industrial relations matters. Duncan also specialised in crisis management for clients and advised on some of the most high profile corporate issues in Ireland. Duncan regularly appeared for clients in the Workplace Relations Commission, the Circuit Court, the High Court, the Court of Appeal and the Supreme Court. Duncan also acted for partnerships in mediated settlements and in proceedings in the High Court.

Summary

The Supreme Court ruled that the High Court was wrong to grant an injunction restraining members of ‘Unite the Union’ from taking industrial action. The court found that the key legislation that governs industrial relations in Ireland provides an “absolute bar” to courts granting injunctions restraining industrial action where the correct legal procedures have been followed.

Background

The company H.A. O’Neil Limited, which provides mechanical and engineering services for the construction sector, and the union, were in dispute over a demand for the restoration of a travel allowance of one hour’s pay that had previously been paid to employees. In seeking the injunction, the firm claimed the industrial action, which included the placing of pickets at sites where it

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Disclaimer The information in this article is provided as part of Legal Island's Employment Law Hub. We regret we are not able to respond to requests for specific legal or HR queries and recommend that professional advice is obtained before relying on information supplied anywhere within this article. This article is correct at 28/03/2025
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