Dublin Airport Authority chief executive Kenny Jacobs has described as ‘baseless’ allegations of sexist, misogynistic, racist, homophobic, and ageist behaviour lodged in a High Court affidavit by the DAA Board and its chairman Basil Geoghegan.
The allegations related to comments alleged made by Mr Jacobs to or about daa employees. Mr remains suspended from his position at the operator of Dublin and Cork airports following a decision by the board in December.
Mr Jacobs initiated High Court proceedings on 8 January against daa to seek the lifting of his suspension and his return to work. He also seeks declarations that the board has prejudged his removal from office and that he cannot expect a fair hearing in a proposed investigation into his conduct. The case is listed to return to court soon.
He states that an investigation by senior counsel Mark Connaughton cleared him of these and other serious allegations last year. He has further described claims that he caused suicidal ideation among employees as false and has denied interference in procurement processes.
In court documents, Jacobs claims he has suffered physical and mental harm from the suspension and related board actions, including the prescription of medication for anxiety and insomnia. He maintains commitment to the role and states he would return to work immediately if permitted.
The suspension followed months of disputes between Jacobs and the daa board, including the failure of a proposed exit package valued at around €960,000 after the Minister for Transport declined to approve it.
DAA chief executive Kenny Jacobs remains suspended from his position at the operator of Dublin and Cork airports following a decision by the board in December. Aer Rianta International CEO Nick Cole was appointed deputy chief executive was appointed in mid-December to ensure continuity of leadership.
Mr Jacobs told the court in a written affidavit that he had already been cleared of these two major allegations by an inquiry headed by leading senior counsel Mark Connaughton and that a further 20 allegations were being lined up against him in order to secure a particularly unfavourable decision against him in the proposed investigation.
Mr Jacobs shared: “I am advised by my doctor that returning to work and focusing on business issues would considerably assist in addressing the harm that I have suffered. My health has deteriorated as a consequence of the treatment I have suffered. I have seen my own GP, daa’s occupational health experts and other clinical specialists and I have been prescribed medication including medication normally used for the treatment of anxiety and insomnia. My return to work is a matter of immediate urgency as is the intervention of the court to restrain a process that has gone radically wrong.”.
