What can I do if I want to make a complaint under this Act?

The Act provides a right of complaint to the Workplace Relations Commission, where a person who claims to have been discriminated against or harassed or subjected to victimisation or not to be receiving equal pay or a benefit under an equality clause may seek redress

Can an employee be penalised for making a complaint under the Employment Equality Acts?

Penalising a person for making a complaint of discrimination or for giving evidence in someone else’s complaint or lawfully opposing unlawful discrimination is called victimisation and the  Act specifically protects a person against such victimisation.

How is Sexual Harassment defined under the Employment Equality Acts?

Sexual Harassment is unlawful under the Employment Equality Acts and is defined as:

  • Acts of physical intimacy

OR

  • Requests for sexual favours

OR

  • Words or gestures

OR

  • The production, display or circulation of written words or pictures

which,  are unwelcome and which have the purpose or effect of violating a person’s dignity and creating an intimidating, hostile, degrading, humiliating or offensive environment for the person.

How are employees protected against Harassment/Sexual Harassment under the Equality Acts?

Harassment is unlawful and is defined as any form of unwanted conduct related to any of the nine discriminatory grounds, which has the purpose or effect of violating a person’s dignity and creating an intimidating, hostile, degrading, humiliating or offensive environment for the person.

Such unwanted conduct may consist of:

  • Acts

OR

  • Requests, spoken words, gestures

OR

  • The production, display or circulation of written words, pictures or other material

 

What aspects of the employment relationship are afforded protection?

The Acts outlaw discrimination in work-related areas such as pay, vocational training, access to employment, work experience and promotion. The Acts also outlaw the publication of discriminatory advertisements and discrimination by employment agencies, vocational training bodies and certain other bodies.

How are employees protected against discrimination in the workplace?

Under the Employment Equality Act 1998 to 2014, employers cannot discriminate against employees in any aspect of the employment relationship on any of the following grounds as laid down in Equality Acts:

  • Gender
  • Family status
  • Civil status
  • Religion
  • Age
  • Sexual Orientation
  • Disability
  • Race
  • Membership of the Travelling Community