A former lecturer at the country’s largest independent third-level college has been awarded €53,000 in compensation after he was dismissed for accessing his work email while visiting what was claimed was a “prohibited” country.
The award was made after Dublin Business School conceded at a hearing of the Workplace Relations Commission that its dismissal of Amir Sajad Esmaeily from his role at the college was unfair.
The WRC heard Mr Esmaeily, a lecturer in data analytics, was dismissed on February 3, 2023, following a disciplinary process which found him guilty of gross misconduct because his unauthorised access to his work email represented a serious breach of college policy.
Mr Esmaeily had begun work with the college in September 2018 before entering a permanent contract in February 2022 on a gross salary of €50,000.
Dublin Business School said it had initiated a disciplinary process on Mr Esmaeily after he had accessed the college’s system while visiting a “prohibited” country, Iran, despite being told not to do so before he left Ireland, both verbally and via email.
Mr Esmaeily’s solicitor, Barry Crushell, confirmed that the country in question was Iran.
Counsel for Mr Esmaeily, Cillian McGovern, complained the college had failed to consider any other sanction for his actions, which he claimed did not amount to gross misconduct.
Mr McGovern said the dismissal had a devastating effect on the complainant, who really cared about his students and who would never put the college, his students or his colleagues in harm’s way.
The WRC heard word of mouth about Mr Esmaeily’s dismissal within the small field in which he worked had an effect on his reputation and career prospects.
He claimed his efforts to find alternative work were also affected by the death of an uncle whom he had visited on the trip that was the subject of his dismissal, as well as a miscarriage suffered by his wife.
Counsel for Dublin Business School, Claire Bruton, said it appeared the lecturer had made 35 job applications between his dismissal and August 2024.
Ms Bruton said he had shown no evidence he had applied for work outside of his field, which the college claimed did not amount to the required proactive approach needed to find work.
Mr Esmaeily told the WRC he had some short-lived casual employment in the middle of 2023 as well as some part-time work from September 2023 to May 2024, for which he earned €18,615.
He informed the WRC he had set up a company but as he had no money, he did not have any investment available to get any work.
Mr Esmaeily said extra money he would get from supervising students would bring his average annual salary up to €91,000.
In his ruling, WRC adjudication officer Hugh Lonsdale said the lecturer’s efforts to find work did not satisfy the requirements of the Unfair Dismissals Act.
However, Mr Lonsdale said he took cognisance of the personal events in Mr Esmaeily’s life and the effect which the dismissal had on him.
He ordered Dublin Business School to pay compensation of €53,000, which he claimed was “just and equitable” and based on Mr Esmaeily’s salary of €91,000, his actual financial loss and estimated prospective loss of income.
