The Workplace Relations Commission found that Kelly Green-Ward was sexually harassed at work and ordered Synergy Security Solutions Limited to pay her €3,500. The decision was dated 4 January 2024.
The finding concerned a male security officer’s sexually descriptive comment about his girlfriend, which the adjudication officer found created an offensive environment. The WRC also ordered the company to review its harassment policy and how it is communicated to managers and staff.
Green-Ward had also complained of discrimination on grounds of gender, sexual orientation and membership of the Travelling Community, and of harassment. The WRC found those complaints were not well founded. The employer denied the complaints and said she had not reported them before resigning.
The WRC rejected her separate complaint of constructive discriminatory dismissal, finding she left of her own volition after failing to notify the employer of her grievances or use its grievance procedure. The employer had not shown that its policy was effectively communicated or that it had taken reasonably practicable steps to prevent the sexual harassment.