The Workplace Relations Commission found that Parkgrove Ltd did not discriminate against Joan Bradford when staff asked her to wear a mask in its store. Her complaint under the Equal Status Act was not well founded. The decision was dated 28 June 2022.
Bradford and her daughter entered the store without masks on 8 February 2021 and said they were exempt. Staff asked them to wear masks, and an assistant manager said he would call the Gardaí. Bradford left voluntarily. The adjudication officer accepted that she had a disability within the Act’s definition, but found she had not shown that she was treated less favourably than someone without a disability. The officer also found she had not established facts supporting a presumption of prohibited conduct.
Under the Equal Status Act, a person must show less favourable treatment connected to a protected ground, such as disability. The officer found Bradford had not done so and concluded that Parkgrove had not engaged in prohibited conduct.