A deputy store manager at Lidl who was sacked from her €50,000-a-year job after being accused of taking energy drinks from stock and consuming them without paying first has failed in her claim for unfair dismissal.
The Workplace Relations Commission (WRC) has rejected a claim under the Unfair Dismissals Act 1977 against Lidl Ireland Gmbh by Katazyna Wadlewska, in a decision published this week.
Ms Wadlewska came under scrutiny following an internal stock audit at her store in 2023. The audit discovered that product was being removed from the shelf without being paid for, Lidl’s employee relations manager Scott Jevons submitted.
It was alleged that Ms Wadlewska removed a six-pack of Kong Light energy drink from the supermarket between August 14th and 20th, 2023, and consumed them in its warehouse area.
Ed Shannan, for the complainant, submitted that his client at all stages in the disciplinary investigation “accepted she took the drinks from the shelf, drank one, and left them in the warehouse”.
Ms Wadlewska maintained it was “common practice” at the store to take product at break times and pay afterwards.
She denied “any intent to steal” and said in evidence that she had purchased the drinks “either later the same day or on a subsequent day”.
Ms Wadlewska told the WRC she had not been able to provide receipts because of the passage of time, but said she had paid “in full”.
She told the WRC she believed there was “bias” at play in the investigation. This was on the basis that the investigator, newly-appointed store manager Steven Morrissey, was married to another worker at the store who was her subordinate.
Ms Wadlewska claimed Mr Morrissey’s wife received “preferential treatment” in the workplace. She said she once confronted Mr Morrissey about that and he “reacted angrily”.
Mr Morrisey denied there was “any conflict of interest” related to his wife’s employment.
Mr Morrissey said that when he spoke to his predecessor about the alleged practice of taking product described by Ms Wadlewska, the previous manager denied it.
The company disciplinary officer, Steven Hegarty, gave evidence that Ms Wadlewska “admitted her actions” and expressed remorse for them.
He took the view that there had been a “fundamental breakdown of trust” in Ms Wadlewska and decided to dismiss her on October 20th, 2023.
Adjudicator Úna Glazier-Farmer said: “I find that the investigation was conducted in accordance with the code of practice and that the complainant was afforded fair procedures throughout.”
She noted Ms Wadlewska did not attempt to appeal her dismissal to the company before launching a WRC complaint, on the basis that she had already found a new job.
She found Ms Wadlewska had not been unfairly dismissed.