The Workplace Relations Commission found that the Savoy Hotel Limerick indirectly discriminated against Traveller woman Mary Jane Sheridan through its credit-card check-in policy and awarded her €1,000. The WRC decision was dated 2 November 2023.
Sheridan and her husband were refused accommodation on their wedding night in December 2021 after they could not produce a credit card. They offered a debit-card deposit, which the hotel declined. The hotel said its policy was intended to protect against unpaid bills and damage, and applied to all guests.
The adjudication officer found that the policy put Sheridan at a particular disadvantage as a Traveller, and that the hotel had not shown it was necessary or considered less discriminatory security options. The officer found no direct discrimination because there was no evidence Sheridan had been treated less favourably than someone in a comparable situation. A separate complaint was withdrawn at the hearing.
The award was for embarrassment and inconvenience. The officer also ordered that if the hotel reintroduces the policy, it must allow alternative reasonable security methods.