It would have been entirely remiss for Inland Fisheries Ireland (IFI) not to institute disciplinary proceedings against its former chief executive after an investigation found he provided inappropriate assistance to a candidate seeking a senior position, an employment tribunal has heard.The Workplace Relations Commission (WRC) was told on Friday that the board of the State fisheries agency informed former chief executive Francis O’Donnell in March 2024 that he would face disciplinary proceedings but that this did not go ahead as he was on sick leave for several months. Last June, the IFI board terminated his employment on a without-fault basis and paid him until the expiry of his contract the following November.O’Donnell claims he was unfairly dismissed and was penalised after making protected disclosures under whistleblower legislation. This is denied by the organisation.In cross-examination of O’Donnell on the sixth day of hearings, counsel for IFI Tiernan Lowey said the only reason disciplinary proceedings were instituted was because of the serious findings in the independent investigation report.He said the report by consultants RSM – based on a complaint made against O’Donnell – was produced in February 2024. He said on March 1st, IFI chairman Tom Collins told O’Donnell the board was commencing disciplinary action.O’Donnell told the hearing the RSM process had been flawed as the complainant had admitted to breaching confidentiality rules and sharing material widely, leading to criticisms of him in the Oireachtas and on social media. He said offers to provide data to the investigation to support his defence had been rebuffed. Lowey said O’Donnell’s case was that Collins only decided to initiate disciplinary proceedings because the former chief executive had made protected disclosures.“It is clearly the case that in fact there were very culpable findings made against you in the context of that external investigation, warranting a disciplinary investigation,” Lowey said.Lowey said the RSM investigation report found O’Donnell had provided inappropriate assistance to a candidate in an application for a senior post in Galway. He said it pointed to a series of texts and emails between O’Donnell and the candidate in September and October 2020. He said one contained a note cautioning the recipient to save the material to their own computer “to show it is your document, not mine”.Lowey said the report maintained an email from IFI’s head of human resources containing an attachment with suggested interview questions had been had been saved to O’Donnell’s personal account and then forwarded to the candidate. Lowey said it was entirely reasonable for IFI to commence disciplinary proceedings.“It’s not reasonable at all,” O’Donnell said. He said the process had not been fair to him as the confidentiality of the investigation was breached and information “made public to everybody”.“I was blackmailed by that during that process by a senator. I reported that to the gardaí, the complainant and my employer shared this protected disclosure against me, both did, and ad nauseam,” he said.“I believe I was entitled to a fair, transparent and uncorrupted process, Mr Lowey,” he said.The hearing was told earlier this week that RSM had rejected allegations O’Donnell had bought a boat from IFI and used its staff and resources to have it brought to his home in Donegal. O’Donnell also told the tribunal he had experienced significant mental health issues following a meeting of ministerial appointees, who were in effect serving as an interim IFI board, in January 2024. He said he was subsequently denied access by IFI to an enhanced sick leave scheme applicable in cases of work-related injuries. Lowey said the decision had been taken by Collins, who became chairman of a new IFI board in early 2024, along with the then head of human resources.O’Donnell said IFI had stepped outside its official policy in making this decision and that the health and safety manager had not been involved. O’Donnell said he should have been treated like every other IFI employee but was not.