Courts / Ireland / Report
Supermarket cleared of Traveller discrimination in row over paying for groceries with loose change
2025-06-20
Hearing Or Decision
Summary
In a 2025 decision, the Workplace Relations Commission dismissed a complaint that a supermarket had discriminated against two Traveller children who tried to pay €68 in loose change. The father alleged the cashier refused service because of their Traveller identity. The WRC found the claim "not well founded." The cashier testified that she scanned the purchases, counted €26.80 in coins, and asked the children if they had larger coins or notes, citing a busy queue. She said she was not refusing payment but seeking a more convenient method. The supermarket owner intervened, offering the father options to count coins or use batches, but the father left. The WRC noted that no law requires a cashier to accept more than 50 coins in a single transaction and that the cashier's request was reasonable. The complaint was dismissed.
Who, what, where, when and why
What: Report matter: Supermarket cleared of Traveller discrimination in row over paying for groceries with loose change. Procedural stage: hearing_or_decision
When:
- 22 December Other
- 2025-06-20 Publication
Why: The children's father filed a complaint accusing the accusing the unidentified supermarket of a breach of the Equal Status Act 2000 by refusing service to the children on 22 December, 2023 because they were members of the Traveller Community. CNI source report
Topics
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