On its face, the two-day Labour Court appeal targeting Verizon Ireland before the High Court is niche, bordering on inconsequential. At its root is the question: Should the US telecommunications multinational pay Jean-Philippe Charpentier, chairman of its European Works Council (EWC), just over €12,000 to cover expenses he incurred engaging an expert and attending a conference in Hamburg? The sums involved are small — infinitesimal for the Irish arm of a blockbuster company with $81 billion in gross profits for the year ending March 2025.  But the legal points are significant, touching on the operation of Ireland’s industrial relations framework,…