Act

Complaint Reference No.

Date of Receipt

Complaint seeking adjudication by the Workplace Relations Commission under Section 21 Equal Status Act, 2000

CA-00016818-001

12/12/2017

The Complainant submits that the Respondent discriminated against her on the grounds of race.

The Respondent rejects the complaint.

The Respondent submits that the Complainant failed to issue the required statutory notice to them as required under Section 21(2) of the Equal Status Acts, 2000-2015. The Respondent submits that the last correspondence they received from the Complainant was a letter dated 27 November 2017 which did not refer to the Acts and did not mention the possibility of a claim to the WRC.

The Respondent submits that they only became aware of this complaint when they received correspondence from the WRC. The Respondent asserts, therefore, that the complaint should be dismissed on the basis of the Complainant’s failure to comply with the requirements of Section 21(2) of the Acts.

The Complainant submits that she had no previous dealings with the WRC and was, therefore, unfamiliar with the notification requirements of the Employment Equality Acts.

The Complainant submits that her letter of 27 November 2017 to the Respondent is sufficient to comply with the statutory requirements with regard to notification.

Before deciding on the substantive issue, I must first decide whether the Complainant complied with the notification requirements set out in Section 21(2) of the Equal Status Acts.

Section 21(2)(a) of the Equal Status Acts, 2000 - 2015, states that:

"Before seeking redress under this section the complainant-

shall, within 2 months after the prohibited conduct is alleged to have occurred, or, where more than one incident of prohibited conduct is alleged to have occurred, within 2 months after the last such occurrence, notify the respondent in writing of-

(i) the nature of the allegation,

(ii) the complainant's intention, if not satisfied with the respondent's response to the allegation, to seek redress under this Act.”

The WRC publishes the following guidance on its website in order to assist Complainants who wish to make a complaint under the Equal Status Acts:

“There are two stages to making an equal status complaint. Where an individual is thinking of making a complaint, he or she must first write to the service provider within 2 months of the alleged act of discrimination, stating the nature of the allegation and the intention, if dissatisfied with the response, to refer the case to the Director General of the Workplace Relations Commission. This is called a notification.”

I note that the Complainant is relying on her letter of 27 November 2017 to the Respondent, to fulfil the notification requirements of Section 21(2) of the Equal Status Acts.

I find that the Complainant’s letter of 27 November 2017 to the Respondent does not detail the nature of the allegation nor does it indicate the Complainant’s intention, if not satisfied with the Respondent’s response, to seek redress under the Employment Equality Acts.

In considering this matter, I also note that the Complainant advised the hearing that she has been in business in Ireland for 19 years. I presume, therefore, that she is used to complying with a range of statutory obligations in relation to her business.

Taking all of the foregoing into consideration, I am satisfied that the notification requirements set out in Section 21(2) of the Acts, were not complied with, and accordingly, I find that I have no jurisdiction to investigate this complaint.

In reaching my decision, I have taken into account all of the submissions that were made to me.

In accordance with section 25(4) of the Equal Status Acts, I find that I lack jurisdiction to investigate this matter as the notification requirements set out in Section 21(2) of the Acts were not properly complied with.

No compliance with notification requirements