The Workplace Relations Commission found that Maria Nordwind’s disability discrimination and reasonable accommodation complaint against Coach Stores Ireland Limited was not well founded. Adjudication Officer Paul McKeon issued the decision dated 27 September 2023.
Nordwind said she was medically exempt from wearing a face covering and was asked to leave the Kildare Village store on 6 January 2022. The company said it was required to enforce the face-covering rules then in force.
The adjudicator accepted that Nordwind had a disability, but found she had not provided medical evidence of an exemption to the store on the day or followed up with verifiable support. He considered it reasonable for the store to insist that customers wear face coverings to reduce the risk of harm during the pandemic.
The complaint was not well founded because Nordwind did not establish discrimination or a failure to provide reasonable accommodation.