The Labour Court upheld a €54,000 discrimination award to a teacher against a national school, finding discrimination on age and religious-belief grounds. It overturned the finding on sexual orientation. The determination was signed on 5 October 2015.
The teacher had applied for the principal’s post at the school, where she was deputy principal. She said she had more experience and stronger qualifications than the successful candidate, and that the interview panel questioned her views on religious patronage and pluralism. The school denied discrimination and said the appointment was based on merit.
The Court found that the teacher was better qualified, but the panel gave no cogent explanation for preferring the other candidate. It also found the school had not shown that questioning her religious outlook was reasonable or necessary to maintain the school’s ethos. On sexual orientation, the Court accepted the panel members’ evidence that the alleged interview question was not asked and rejected that complaint. The €54,000 was compensation for the effects of discrimination, not lost pay.