Case Number: ADJ-00027323. Workplace Relations Commission

• Court: Workplace Relations Commission
• Docket Number: ADJ-00027323

Procedure:

In accordance with Section 79 of the Employment Equality Acts, 1998 - 2015,following the referral of the complaint to me by the Director General, I inquired into the complaint and gave the parties an opportunity to be heard by me and to present to me any evidence relevant to the complaint.

Background:

The Complainant commenced employment with the Respondent on 21/10/2019. She was employed as a Food and Beverage Assistant/Barista. The Complainant submitted her original complaint to the Workplace Relations Commission (WRC) on 02/03/2020 and following a withdrawal of the original complaints the within complaint was received by the WRC on 12/04/2020. The Complainant alleges that she was harassed, sexually harassed and discriminated against by a manager, who was also employed by the Respondent, and despite raising her concerns on a few occasions the harassment intensified. The Complainant was not allowed speak to her colleagues (Portuguese) in her native language when on breaks while the same manager did allow male colleagues speak to their colleagues in their native language (Korean) on their breaks. The hearing was assisted by a Portuguese interpreter at the hearing. The Complainant’s employment ceased on 14/06/2020. Due to the sensitive nature of the evidence submitted the parties are not named in this decision.

Summary of Complainant’s Case:

The Complainant was employed as a Food and Beverage Assistant/Barista with the Respondent. The Complainant in evidence provided comprehensive details of dates and events which was submitted to establish facts from which the presumption of sexual harassment, and harassment based on the Complainant’s gender and/or ethnic-national origin can be inferred. Details of verbal, non-verbal and physical conduct by “Manager A” were described by the Complainant in evidence. Such examples included the calling of names, inappropriate suggestive comments and intimate and unnecessary physical contact and leering. The physical contact and touching took place behind a tight counter space and the complainant had to constantly watch where “Manager A” was to try and pre-emptively avoid such contact. The Complainant also described harassment by “Manager A” in the form of degrading and offensive demands such as asking for tasks to be completed while she was working on another task or while on her break. The Complainant was repeatedly asked not to speak her native language while on her break. Other examples include, intrusive requests for personal information; attempts to intimate her by repeating the same questions even after a response was given. The Complainant also outlined how she was subjected to excessive monitoring by “Manager A”...