The Equality Tribunal rejected discrimination and harassment complaints brought by Mrs. Z on behalf of her three children against a national school. Equality Officer Enda Murphy dated the decision 30 December 2010.
Mrs. Z said the school principal spoke to her in a derogatory way after her sons returned in June 2008. She alleged that her Traveller identity and gender affected his treatment of her, and that her sons faced adverse treatment because they were Travellers. The school denied the claims and said it had not been told in advance that the children were returning.
The officer accepted the principal’s account of the telephone call and found his conduct was not connected to Mrs. Z’s Traveller identity. He also found the children had not been treated adversely because of their Traveller identity. The decision said Traveller community membership was separately protected, with no additional protection on the race ground in this case.
The harassment complaint also failed: the school had not been told about the alleged bullying while the child attended, and there was no evidence linking it to his Traveller identity. The Tribunal found in favour of the school on all complaints.