By Gordon Deegan

A chef has lost his job after taunting a co-worker into an arm wrestle that went badly wrong.

In the fiercely contested arm wrestle, the chef suffered a broken right arm while his co-worker also sustained an injury to his own arm.

In the day prior to the the arm wrestle on May 12, 2017, a hearing at the Workplace Relations Commission (WRC) heard evidence from his employer that the chef sent several text messages to his co-worker taunting him into having the arm wrestle.

The texts contained pictures of his flexed arm and derogatory language with one of the texts saying “Why did you f**k off like a mouse?” and also stating “tomorrow”.

His co-worker took up the challenge and the arm wrestle took place at 2pm on May 12. It was witnessed by two colleagues and was recorded by another employee.

However, the chef sustained a broken arm in the arm wrestle and the employer stated that the chef continued to send more derogatory messages to his co-worker after the event stating “he had a stronger left arm”, “tomorrow bitch” and “a stronger left arm and will show you next time”.

The employer is a whole food restaurant and catering provider and the arm wrestle took place in the firm’s central production kitchen which services the restaurants and catering clients.

However, as a result of the broken arm sustained in the arm wrestle, the chef went on sick leave after the incident and underwent surgery on his broken arm on May 31.

He was discharged from hospital on June 6 and the restaurant sacked the chef for gross misconduct on June 28.

He was already on a final 12-month written warning at the time after he was involved in a fist fight with a co-worker five months previous in January 2017.

The restaurant and catering business, which employs 150 people, also issued a final written warning to the other man arising from the arm wrestle.

The chef sued for unfair dismissal arguing his employer failed to consider that he had been invited to engage in the arm wrestle by the co-worker and that the employer had failed to consider the existing culture in that particular workplace where this was a feature.

The chef also alleged that the employer reached its decision to dismiss based on witness statements, but there were clear inconsistencies in these.

He also claimed that his employer also failed to provide adequate reasons for his dismissal and was not afforded fair procedures.

In her findings to the case where no parties are named, WRC Adjudication Officer, Rosaleen Glackin found that the worker’s claim for unfair dismissal was not well-founded.

Ms Glackin said she did not accept the argument of the chef that his employer should have had regard for the “culture” that pertained in the workplace.