Courts / Ireland / Report
Multinational which asked new-hire his 'drag queen name' ordered to pay €25k compensation
2023-10-18
Hearing Or Decision
Summary
A multinational company was found by the Workplace Relations Commission to have subjected a new employee to discriminatory treatment. The employee was asked to provide a "drag queen name" on a questionnaire that was then circulated office‑wide. He later reported that his country manager made a series of offensive remarks about his sexuality, including comments about his father's reaction to his being gay, references to mascara, and a "bears" joke implying gay men. The manager also used the phrase "I'm back bitches" toward him and another colleague. An internal investigation described the language as inappropriate but not intended to offend or motivated by the employee's sexuality. The tribunal upheld the discrimination claim, rejected the constructive dismissal and victimisation claims, and ordered the company to pay €25,000 in compensation for the discriminatory conduct. The company's final written warning to the manager was deemed insufficient by the adjudicator.
Who, what, where, when and why
What: Report matter: Multinational which asked new-hire his 'drag queen name' ordered to pay €25k compensation. Procedural stage: hearing_or_decision
When:
- September 2021 Other
- 2023-10-18 Publication
Why: The complainant said in evidence that when a colleague asked at a working lunch in September 2021 about his background as a gay man growing up in Northern Ireland, he explained that his father "did not take the news that [I] was gay very well". CNI source report
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