Galway Agriculture Department officers lose High Court Case

Galway Bay fm newsroom – Two Department of Agriculture officers from Galway have lost a High Court case over their claim that they should have been redeployed. Vincent Gormley from Brownsgrove Tuam and James Scott from Glinsk, Ballymoe were told they were ‘surplus to requirements' in 2011. The pair claimed they should have been redeployed as assistant agriculture inspectors. According to today's Irish Times, Vincent Gormley and James Scott were employed by the Department of Agriculture as technical agricultural officers. They both held Bachelor degrees of science in rural development and James Scott also has a masters degree in rural environmental conservation and management. Vincent Gormley claimed that the Public Appointments Service should have been notified that he and his colleague James Scott were available for redeployment. In 2012, the Department advertised for the position of assistant agriculture inspectors but applications by the two men were rejected. They challenged the decision. However, Justice Hogan said that the rejection of the applications wsa not unreasonable and the men were given reasons for their rejection.