ADJUDICATION OFFICER DECISION/RECOMMENDATION
Adjudication Reference: ADJ-00012587
Parties:
| Complainant | Respondent |
Anonymised Parties | An area manager | A group of specialist shops |
Complaint:
Act | Complaint/Dispute Reference No. | Date of Receipt |
Complaint seeking adjudication by the Workplace Relations Commission under section 77 of the Employment Equality Act, 1998 | CA-00016736-001 | 10/01/2018 |
Date of Adjudication Hearing: 08/06/2018
Workplace Relations Commission Adjudication Officer: Catherine Byrne
Procedure:
In accordance with Section 79 of the Employment Equality Acts 1998 - 2015, this complaint was assigned to me by the Director General. I conducted a hearing on June 8th 2018 and gave the parties an opportunity to be heard by me and to present to me evidence relevant to the complaint.
The complainant was accompanied by her parents, and her mother took the role of her representative. Mr Tom Mallon, BL represented the respondent, instructed by O’Shea Barry Solicitors.
Background:
From March 2011, the complainant was employed in her parents’ business, which specialised in baking supplies. The business was placed in provisional liquidation on June 29th 2017 following which, the employees were placed on temporary lay-off. Along with the other employees, the complainant was made redundant on September 4th 2017. In July 2017, the liquidator decided to resume trading in some parts of the business, but the complainant was not re-engaged. Her complaint is that she was discriminated against because she is the daughter of the former owners of the company. She alleged that the discrimination she suffered was due to her family status. Section 6(2)(c) of the Employment Equality Act 1998 is intended to prohibit discrimination on the grounds of a person’s family status. As a result of this legislation, it is unlawful for an employer to discriminate against an employee on the basis of them being married or single, or on the basis of them having children or not having children. At the outset of the hearing, I explained to the complainant that her allegation of discrimination on the basis of her parentage is not discrimination on the grounds of family status as provided for in the Act. For this reason, I have no jurisdiction to hear her complaint. |
Decision:
Section 79 of the Employment Equality Acts, 1998 – 2015 requires that I make a decision in relation to the complaint in accordance with the relevant redress provisions under section 82 of the Act.
The complainant did not submit a complaint of discrimination in accordance with the provisions of section 6(2) of the Employment Equality Acts 1998 – 2015. For this reason, I have decided that I have no jurisdiction to hear her complaint and her complaint fails. |
Dated: 4th September 2018.
Workplace Relations Commission Adjudication Officer: Catherine Byrne
Key Words:
Lack of jurisdiction |