Ellison Silva dos Santos, a former bouncer at Dublin’s preeminent LGBTQ+ bar, The George, has filed a complaint with the Workplace Relations Commission (WRC) claiming that he was unfairly dismissed following a summer 2023 incident where he was accused of allegedly pushing a transgender woman down the stairs at the venue. 

According to Silva dos Santos, he was fired by the venue’s general manager, Darragh Flynn, two days after the alleged incident. Silva dos Santos similarly told the WRC that Flynn refused to hear his side of the story when discussing the incident. 

The former bouncer claimed that the woman in question “threw herself” down the stairs of the venue following an altercation wherein the customer allegedly slapped him across the face. 

The George’s management team, operated by the Mercantile Entertainment Group Ltd. has denied firing Silva dos Santos as a result of the altercation. Instead, management claims that the former bouncer was let go for failing to attend previously rostered shifts at the Dublin queer bar, as well as at other local venues such as George’s Street’s Nolita cocktail bar and Wexford Street’s Opium nightclub. 

While management at the Mercantile Entertainment Group Ltd. holds fast that Silva dos Santos was not fired as a result of the alleged altercation at The George, and persists that he was offered alternative work following the incident, the man denies the legitimacy of these claims, saying that he was only ever contracted to work at The George and not at other venues operated by the hospitality group. 

Speaking about the incident, which allegedly occurred on June 28, 2023, Silva dos Santos claims that he encountered a transgender customer who had, in his words, had too much to drink. Silva dos Santos goes on to claim that he requested to speak with the patron in another location. 

Giving evidence via an interpreter at a WRC hearing, Silva dos Santos claimed that the patron complied with his requests at first, but then “went the other direction”. The bouncer then claims that he “tried to touch [her] to come on to this direction”. 

“The client didn’t like and slapped him in the face. After [being] slapped in the face he grabbed her arm and conducted her downstairs. She was trying to fight to him, but she don’t fall too much because he was holding her,” the interpreter said.

According to Silva dos Santos, the patron then attempted to kick him twice after falling to the floor. 

When a duty manager arrived on the scene of the alleged incident, Silva dos Santos claims that he told the manager that the patron had slapped him across the face prior to falling. 

“He tell everything. The manager screamed at him asking him to leave the situation and just go out,” the interpreter said.

The Mercantile Group’s HR manager, Holly Kiely, provided CCTV footage of the incident during Silva dos Santos’ cross-examination at the WRC earlier this week. 

While viewing the footage, HR consultant John Keenan was reported as telling Silva dos Santos: “You did actually push the lady, it’s quite clear.”

“No,” Silva dos Santos said.

“You deny it,” Keenan said.

“It’s your opinion, I respect that, but I don’t push,” the complainant said.

“The duty manager on the night he attended, said there were actually two pushes; the lady found herself on the steps twice before she went out,” Keenan said.

“She didn’t fall, she throw herself,” the complainant said.

“Ah right, so she threw herself,” Mr Keenan said.

“She was trying [to] escape, it’s like she was trying to make a drama,” the complainant said.

Silva dos Santos went on to claim that he met with Darragh Flynn, the general manager at The George, two days after the alleged incident. During this meeting, Silva dos Santos claims, Flynn told him: “You are fired.” Silva dos Santos maintains that his employment ended following that conversation. 

Flynn has since denied this, claiming that he met with Silva dos Santos to discuss the incident, at which point the former bouncer allegedly told the manager: “Either I’m working tonight, or I’m fired.” 

Flynn claims that, during the meeting, he attempted to discuss Silva dos Santos’ “over-aggressive” approach during the alleged incident. Flynn went on to claim that Silva dos Santos failed to follow his duty manager’s directions following the altercation and claimed that the former bouncer later left work early without permission.

“[He] didn’t accept he’d done anything wrong, he requested to see the CCTV, I agreed, we went upstairs and watched the footage,” Flynn said.

“He felt he was perfectly entitled to push her down the stairs… he had no remorse,” Flynn continued.

 “I didn’t feel comfortable with him working in The George,” the manager added.

Flynn went on to tell the WRC that he discussed arranging work for Silva dos Santos at other Mercantile Group venues. Following this discussion, however, Flynn claims that Silva dos Santos later received a roster that included shifts scheduled at The George. 

A warning letter was later issued to Silva dos Santos by Group HR Manager Holly Kiely. The complainant claims that this warning was issued by HR without them having sat down with him to hear his side of the story. 

“You believed just what you heard from the manager there?” said the complainant, cross-examining Kiely.

“I listened to everyone’s account, and on the basis of the information available to me, I issued the letter,” Kiely responded.

Kiely went on to claim that she had written to Silva dos Santos on several occasions regarding his failure to attend rostered shifts before eventually terminating his employment on August 11, 2023. 

Following his dismissal, Silva dos Santos allegedly sent an email to Kiely in December 2023 seeking a “compensatory figure” of  €23,440.

“At any point did you propose matters could be resolved through a payment to [the complainant],” asked Mr Keenan.

“We said we would like to actively resolve the issue but there was no payment offered,” Ms Kiely said.

“I say it is plain as the nose on your face that there was no dismissal here. I have to put it that the claim ultimately before the WRC is about seeking an opportunity – using [the incident] as an opportunity to get compensatory payment,” said Keenan, closing his case. 

During his WRC hearing, Silva dos Santos claimed that he felt “really really sad” that he had been allegedly slapped by the patron in question, as well as feeling “down” that his duty manager had allegedly screamed at him following the incident. 

“All the time they keep calling him a liar and keep saying he wasn’t fired and the warning letter he received had just one side of the story because no one call him to hear his side of the story,” said Silva dos Santos’ interpreter on his behalf.

The case is currently under consideration by WRC adjudicator Marie Flynn, who has reported that she will issue her findings to both parties in “due course”.