The Workplace Relations Commission awarded Caroline O’Connor €55,000 after finding that the Irish Prison Service discriminated against her by failing to provide reasonable accommodation for her disability. A separate penalisation complaint was found not well founded.
The decision was dated 16 August 2022. O’Connor, a Prison Service manager, sought to work from home during the Covid-19 pandemic because of a heart condition. The Service refused, citing its policy that prison-based staff had to work on site.
The adjudicator found that the Service imposed a blanket ban without assessing O’Connor’s proposed duties or meaningfully exploring possible adjustments. It had not evaluated her proposal or shown that working from home would impose a disproportionate burden. Reasonable accommodation means practical changes that allow a worker with a disability to do their job.
The €55,000 was compensation for the effects of the discrimination. The Commission also directed the Service to establish a working party and develop an operational reasonable accommodation policy.
The separate complaint alleged that reduced sick pay amounted to penalisation under workplace safety law. The adjudicator found no detriment by the complaint date: O’Connor was still on full pay.