The WRC found against seven members of a Traveller family in claims alleging discrimination and harassment over homelessness assistance after the complainants did not attend a hearing. The merits were not decided. WRC Adjudication Officer Orla Jones dated the decision 24 April 2023.
The claims concerned alleged race and Traveller community discrimination over the withholding of assistance towards homelessness payments. The WRC amended the respondent from individual government officials to a government department, finding that the officials acted as its employees and did not provide goods and services in their own right.
The complainants’ representative had asked the adjudicator to recuse herself, but the request had been refused before the hearing. The representative repeated the objection at the hearing and left. The department sought to have the claims struck out. The WRC concluded its investigation and found against the complainants because no evidence had been presented.