The Workplace Relations Commission found that Elizabeth Barry’s complaints about Aer Lingus’s cabin crew uniform and a pandemic-related pay reduction were not well founded. Two other complaints were withdrawn.
The WRC decision, dated 24 November 2022, concerned Barry, a long-serving Cabin Service Manager. She alleged that the female cabin crew uniform was less practical and comfortable than the male uniform, and that it was degrading in a professional setting.
On the discrimination complaint, the adjudicator noted consultation and staff input during the uniform design process, including options for female crew to wear trousers and a cardigan under a jacket. The complaint was found not well founded.
Barry also challenged a reduction in her salary during the Covid-19 pandemic. The adjudicator said they were not in a position to disagree that an implied right to reduce pay applied in the circumstances, citing the collapse in air travel and the severe measures affecting employees. That complaint was also found not well founded.
The complaints under the Payment of Wages Act and the Employment Equality Act were rejected. Claims under the Payment of Wages Act and the Terms of Employment (Information) Act were withdrawn.