Ireland Update: Clarity And Change For Whistleblowing

The recent Supreme Court decision in Baranya v Rosderra Irish Meats Group Limited [2021] has important implications for employers addressing protected disclosures made in the workplace.

The timing of the Supreme Court decision is particularly apt with the imminent deadline for implementation of Directive (EU) 2019/1937 of the European Parliament and of the Council on the protection of persons who report breaches of Union law ("Directive").

Baranya v Rosderra Irish Meats Group Limited

The background to the Baranya decision featured a communication by an employee of a meat processing plant who was required to undertake a large amount of "scoring" work which he alleged caused him a great deal of pain. The employee contended that he was unfairly dismissed following this communication and that his complaint regarding the work causing him pain constituted a protected disclosure under the Protected Disclosures Act 2014 ("2014 Act") The employer denied that this