Complaints to the Equality Tribunal on grounds of racial discrimination increased by 106 per cent last year, the body’s annual report revealed today.
Some 307 cases of alleged discrimination on race grounds were referred to the independent body, compared to 149 similar cases in 2006.
There was a 44 per cent increase overall in employment equality claims in 2007 and an 11 per cent increase in equal status claims. In all, there were 852 cases referred to the tribunal last year compared to 628 in 2006.
Employment-related claims now account for a total of four-fifths of the tribunal’s new business.
There was also a 59 per cent increase in claims on the grounds of disability and a 5 per cent increase on the gender ground. However, claims relating to discrimination on the age ground dropped by 14 per cent.
The Equality Tribunal said the upward trend had continued in the first half of 2008, with a record number of claims. Employment referrals are up by 32 per cent in the first half of 2008, again mainly on race ground. Equal status referrals are up by 11 per cent.
Gender, disability and age continue to give rise to “significant numbers of cases”, the body said.
Amounts totalling €461,816 (excluding equal pay and pay arrears etc.) were awarded in compensation last year where discrimination was found. The average award was €14,431 compared to €10,113 in 2006.
The highest award was €125,000. Awards in relation to equal pay were made in four cases.
Two former employees of An Post were awarded over €70,000 each when the Equality Tribunal found that a company scheme, which was not available to employees over 60, was discriminatory.
A rheumatology nurse, who was orginally from South Africa, was awarded €25,000 for discrimination by St James’s Hospital when she was not promoted to a managerial post for which she was the most highly qualified.
In another case, the a woman who was asked to leave a Centra convenience store because she had her guide dog with her was awarded €3,000. The equality officer dealing with the case ordered that all staff at the shop be trained in equality law provisions.
The tribunal also ordered the manager of a store to pay compensation to an employee who was dismissed because she was unable to communicate fully when her hearing aid was sent for repair.
A branch of the Irish Referees Society was found to have discriminated against a member of the Traveller community when it refused him a transfer from a different branch, despite a shortage of referees in the area.
The tribunal is an independent quasi-judicial body set up to adjudicate on complaints of discrimination in employment or in the provision of goods and services.
Director of the Equality Tribunal Melanie Pine said many of the employment claims involve “significant new points of law or large numbers of people, and have implicatins for employees and employers in every area of the economy”.
"The tribunal has been a vital, impartial forum for almost 14,000 people who have brought claims of discrimination to the tribunal since it was set up in 1999. Indeed, tribunal decisions are important beyond the individual: they can change how systems work to make them fairer in future,” she said.
Minister for Integration Conor Lenihan said that while there had been a 106 per cent increase in complaints of racial discrimination, it was a relatively small number of cases in comparison to the number of ethnic groups in the State.
Just 307 claims were received by the tribunal last year, with some 435,000 immigrants living in the country, he said.
"While any discrimination is to be deplored continuing education of employees on their rights and employers on their responsibilities is extremely important and the increase number of cases being brought to the Equality Tribunal on race grounds does indicate an increase in the awareness of rights."
Mr Lenihan said the National Employment Rights Authority had been established to enforce workers rights and that trade unions should also have structures in place to counteract racial abuse.
"For my part I am committed to fostering integration in the workplace and am in contact with the Equality Authority and employers and trade unions about putting in place suitable arrangements."
Mr Lenihan said he hoped to make a further announcement on the matter in the next month or so.