High Court Overturns Labour Court Findings In Verizon EWC Dispute

• Published date: 12 December 2025
• Law Firm: Arthur Cox
• Author: Mr Kevin Langford, Louise O'Byrne, Cian Beecher and Niamh Fennelly

In a significant development for European Works Councils ("EWCs") in Ireland, the High Court, in Charpentier v Verizon Ireland Limited, has set aside Labour Court determinations concerning Verizon's obligations under the Transnational Information and Consultation of Employees Act 1996 (the "TICEA"). The judgment provides important clarification on the interpretation of section 17 of the TICEA and its alignment with EU Directive 2009/38/EC on the establishment of a European Works Council (the "EWC Directive").

The EWC Directive, as transposed into Irish law by the TICEA and the European Communities (Transnational Information and Consultation of Employees Act 1996) (Amendment) Regulations 2011, requires multinational employers to set up information and consultation processes, most often in the form of a EWC or European Employees' Forum, for the purpose of informing and consulting with employees on a range of issues relating to transnational developments within the organisation. EWCs are comprised of employees' representatives from each country that is a member of the EU and/or the European Economic Area (EEA), in which an organisation has employees.

The obligation to establish a EWC is triggered when a company, or group of companies, meets the following criteria:

• at least 1,000 employees within the EU or EEA member states and
• at least 150 employees in each of at least two different member states.

Background to case

Verizon had operated its EWC under UK law until shortly before Brexit, at which point the EWC agreement expired and negotiations to replace it broke down before agreement was reached. Verizon then decided to operate its EWC under Irish law, specifically the 'subsidiary requirements' contained in the Second Schedule to the TICEA.

On foot of its obligations under section 17(6) of the TICEA, which provides that "the members of the... European Works Council... shall be provided with appropriate training by their employers without loss of wages", Verizon organised training on the operation of EWCs in Ireland by independent legal experts for the EWC members. Four members of the EWC were not satisfied that the training provided met the requirements under the TICEA and attended a further training course provided by the EWC Academy in Hamburg, despite Verizon indicating that it would not cover the cost of this training.

In addition to the training, the members retained an expert from the EWC Academy to provide expert assistance to the EWC on a number...