A leading HR expert from Kerry has pointed to the similarities between the redundancy terms for Arcadia Group workers and former Debenhams staff.
490 Arcadia retail workers in Ireland, including in Kerry, are being made permanently redundant.
Arcadia, which owns brands such as Topshop, Dorothy Perkins and Wallis, went into liquidation in November; the pandemic and a move to online shopping were blamed.
Caroline McEnery of the HR Suite, says Mandate said there was a 2014 collective agreement providing for enhanced redundancy, but the former staff will only get statutory redundancy of two weeks per year of service capped at €600 per week.
Ms McEnery said a similar situation arose with former Debenhams staff; the Chair of the Labour Court Kevin Foley found a 2016 collective agreement had no legal application in the context of a liquidation.
