Locations
The Equality Tribunal has awarded the sum of €5,000 to an employee who brought a claim against her employer on the grounds that she was discriminated against on the grounds of gender and race.
The Complainant maintained that, amongst other grounds, she was discriminated against by reason of her employer not translating her employment contract and health & safety documents into her native language, thus putting her at a disadvantage given her poor command of English.
The Equality Officer found that whilst there was no direct discrimination against the Complainant due to the fact that the Complainant confirmed in oral evidence that she understood the contents of the documents as they had been translated to her by a neighbour, there was a duty of care by the Employer to treat foreign employees the same as a hypothetical Irish employee. In this case, the Employer had failed to discharge its duty of care. On this basis, the Equality Officer awarded the Complainant €5,000 in compensation for the effects of discrimination.
Employers are reminded to ensure that all documents that are given to employees are explained in full and that confirmation is received from the employee that they fully understand the contents and nature of the documents.
Mikoliunien v Halcyon Contract Cleaners Limited, DEC-E2015-036, Equality Tribunal
A full copy of the decision can be viewed here.