Brian Cullen, John McDonagh & Martin McDonagh
V
Lakelands View Bar
(Represented by Irwin Kilcullen & Co. )
Brian Cullen, John McDonagh and Martin McDonagh each referred a claim of discrimination on the Traveller ground to the Director of Equality Investigations under the Equal Status Act 2000. In accordance with her powers under section 75 of the Employment Equality Act, the Director then delegated the case to me, Bernadette Treanor, an Equality Officer, for investigation, hearing and decision and for the exercise of other relevant functions of the Director under Part III of the Equal Status Act.
Summary of the Complainants' case
Mr. Cullen is a resource worker with the Mahon Traveller Health Education Project. Martin McDonagh was a member of the group for 20 years. On 29th April 2003 the group held a meeting to which local businesses had been invited. After the meeting the three complainants went to the respondent premises having asked others to join them for refreshments. Mr. Cullen ordered 3 drinks but the barman walked away. He gave his order again to another person who said he could not serve them. The bar manager said it was company policy not to serve people they did not know. Mr. Cullen asked if the refusal was because he had two Travellers with him and the company policy was repeated again. As they left they met another non-Traveller person who had attended the meeting. When they told him what had happened he could not believe it and asked who was in the bar. He went in and when he returned he told the complainants that he knew the barman and that he had been told that if he came back in that night he would be barred himself. The group went to another establishment. Prior to this incident Mr. Cullen had been in the bar alone occasionally when the group had finished late and no difficulties had arisen. He knew one of the barmen but had been unaware that he was the manager. He had never been refused before and he believes that the barman knew the two men he was with were Travellers and that is why they were refused. He was horrified as a settled person to know what it is like to be refused and perhaps if more people knew what it is like to be a Traveller they might take a different line. Mr. John McDonagh was unable to attend the hearing.
Summary of the Respondent's Case
The respondent is no longer in the bar trade. He stated that at the time of the incident their customer base was made up of all sections of the community including Travellers. He indicated the difficulties he had had in getting the staff who had been on duty on the night of the refusal to provide evidence and apologized for being unable to defend the case properly. What appears to be a contemporaneous note of the incident in an incident book was produced at the hearing but the author was unavailable. The note confirms the refusal, and that on the night one of the group stated that he had been in the pub several times before and the only difference this time was the company he was in. The note also details the other non-Traveller going in to the pub although it indicates that he was rather more robust in his approach to the bar staff.
Conclusions of the Equality Officer
Three complainants submitted claims of discrimination. As one, John McDonagh, was unavailable on the day of the hearing he has failed to support his allegations of discrimination on the Traveller ground. Therefore he has failed to establish a prima facie case of discrimination on the Traveller ground.
Mr. Cullen, a non-Traveller stated that he had been in the respondent premises a number of times before the incident complained of. When refused on 29th April 2003 he apparently pointed this out to the bar staff as it is recorded in their note of the incident. His previous patronage was not disputed either at the hearing or in the contemporaneous note. I am satisfied on the balance of probabilities that it is the case that Mr. Cullen had previously been in the pub and been served while unknown to the staff.
When he entered with the other two complainants they were refused. Since he had previously been in alone and been served, even though unknown to the staff, and yet was refused when he entered with two Travellers I am satisfied that an inference of discrimination on the Traveller ground arises in relation to Martin McDonagh and an inference of discrimination on the Traveller ground, by association, arises in relation to Brian Cullen. I find that they each have established a prima facie case of discrimination
Other than the contemporaneous note of the incident the respondent was unable to present evidence in support of their refusal of the complainants. No evidence was available to address the matter of Brian Cullen being served while alone and not being served while with two members of the Traveller community. On that basis I find that they have failed to rebut the prima facie case of discrimination established by Brian Cullen and Martin McDonagh.
Decision DEC-S2007-078
I find that John McDonagh has failed to establish a prima facie case of discrimination. I also find that Martin McDonagh and Brian Cullen were discriminated against on the Traveller ground and on the Traveller ground by association respectively.
I hereby order the respondent to pay Brian Cullen and Martin McDonagh €1000 each for the effects of the discrimination.
Bernadette Treanor
Equality Officer
15th November 2007