Date: Fri, 18 Mar 94 17:54:23 GMT
From: pdowling@lib1.tcd.ie (patricia cathe dowling)


A Employment by private companies
  Employment by the Government

The Irish government amended the 1977 Unfair Dismissals Act in 1993 to protect
gays,lesbians and bisexuals by explicitly enshrining sexual orientation in the
law. This means that a person cannot be denied employment or be dismissed becuase he or she is known to be gay. Unfortunately this legislation has not yet been
enforced,and the courts are still operating under the outdated 1977 legislation.
The Government has pledged to update the law by the end of this year.
Unfortunately this promise came too late for one Irish lesbian.
In February 1994, Donna McAnellan lost her job as a fitness instructor in Cork,
because of allegations that she had kissed another woman in the locker rooms.
Donna denied the allegation,although she has never denied that she is a lesbian.
Bravely she decided to take her employer,Brookfield,to court under the Unfair
Dismissals Act. The court proclaimed that she had been unjustly treated but
could do nothing for her because the 1977 Act had not been updated,and outlawed
discrimination on grounds of sex but not sexual orientation.
Furthermore another loophole emerged. An employee must be in employment for at
least 12 months before he or she can take a case for unfair dismissal on the
grounds of sexual orientation,under additional Fair Employment legislation
introduced in 1992. Donna had only been in employment for 6 months when she 
was dismissed.
There was much public uproar over this case,almost all of it supportive of
Donna's courageous stance. The Minister for Equality and Law Reform(a new
ministry,created in 1992)was left with egg on his face and much explaining
to do,but could only mutter that he would try and speed up the implementation
of the updated legislation.
The only good thing to come out of this case(and this is quite a major change)
was the evidence of a huge groundswell of support among Irish people for gay
and lesbian rights.This can only encourage more Irish lesbians and gay men to
come out and denounce injustices in employment.

Lesbian and gay employees are also protected under 2 separate codes of practice

1)The Irish Civil Service(i.e.Government employees)adopted a resolution in 1
1986(?) forbidding disrimination against gay and lesbian civil servants in
relation to recruitment,promotion,training and dismissal.

2)The Irish Congress of Trade Unions,the largest trade union of public sector
workers in Ireland,also adopted a code at its annual conference in 1989,
protecting the rights of gay and lesbian members in relation to recruitment,
promotion etc and also adopted a resolution in relation to hiv/aids,which
protects those members who are hiv-positive from dismissal.

Unfortunately,in relation to private sector workers,many of these employees
are not unionised and do not enjoy the protection accorded their public
sector equivalents. Such workers,many of whom are women working in grossly
underpaid part-time work,are most at risk of dismissal if found to be gay
or lesbian. The amended 1977 Unfair Dismissals Act DOES cover these workers,
but in the absence of test-cases,such legislation has yet to prove its
efficacy. Of course the employer can always claim that the dismissed employee
was 'unsatisfactory' in other respects(time-keeping,tidiness,etc)rather than
admitting to having dismissed the employee because of their sexual preferences.


B Serving in the military

No explicit legislation exists in this area. However the Minister for Defence
David Andrews has made it known recently that he would be in favour of
outlawing discriminatory practices in relation to the employment of gays and
lesbians in the army,and considers sexual orientation as an irrlevant factor
in the  performance of military duties.


C Housing/Education/Public services/Accomodation

The government circulated a draft of proposed Equal Status legislation in
August 1993,to various interested parties,including gay and lesbian groups,
travellers groups,womens groups and disabled groups.
This legislation,due to be brought before the Dail(House of Parliament)by
the end of this year,would outlaw discrimination on the basis of race,colour,
religious creed,sexual orientation,disability etc.,in relation to education
(access to schools,curriculum),housing(rental,sale,mortgage provision),
public services(rental of halls for meetings,access to premises for 
entertainments,health services,sporting facilities).
It has many loopholes/ommissions as it stands at the moment(in draft form).
It does not extend protection to the unemployed,prostitutes("sex workers"),
people with aids/hiv-positive citizens.
It exempts the religious groups from compliance with the legislation,in the
areas of education and accomodation,where the ethos of the church would be 
undermined. As the Catholic Church is effectively,the main provider of education
in Ireland,and has much institutional clout,gay and lesbian groups are fighting
this 'natural' exemption.
The legislation does not attempt to deal with issues around partnerships,ie
nomination of partners for inheritance rights,taxation,mortgages,insurance etc.
This is a fundamental right for gays and lesbians. In a meeting with the Irish
government recently,Lesbian Equality Network(LEN)discussed this ommission and
highlighted its importance. The Government however feels that such rights
clash with the Constitution. We have studied the Constitution and find nothing
to support this curious view,beyond its underlying(albeit rather vague)ethos
of Catholicism.
The media is also absent from the legislation,an ommission the Government has
been made aware of. 
This proposed legislation is apparently being modelled upon Australian and
American models of equality legislation. If anyone out there on the QUEERNET
would be willing to provide me with more information on these models,I'd be
eternally grateful.

D Contracts and negotiations

I don't quite understand what is connoted by the above so have no information
to share with the net. 


I'll post again with additional information and amendments to the above(some
of the dates are particularly suspect....time passes quickly in lesbian and
gay politics and my brain is a little addled at 5.30 p.m. on a Friday evening!!


Anyway,to sum up....Ireland is no queer paradise but things are changing slowly
but surely. Sure,you could visit us anytime and live it up in Irish style!!!!

In solidarity,
Patricia Dowling