In 2006, the Labour Court allowed Mr O’S’s disability discrimination appeal against A Government Department and directed it to pay him €20,000 compensation. The determination was signed on 13 September 2006. The case concerned his exclusion from a promotion competition after he could not attend an interview while hospitalised. He said the department should have deferred the interview; the department denied discrimination and said it did not know he was seeking a deferral.
The Court found that Mr O’S wanted to remain in the competition and that a reasonable postponement could have allowed him to attend after leaving hospital. It ruled that refusing a deferral denied him an equal opportunity for promotion and amounted to disability discrimination. The Court set aside the Equality Officer’s decision and awarded €20,000 for the effects of discrimination.