The Irish Human Rights and Equality Commission welcomes the appointment of Professor Michael O’Flaherty as the new Commissioner for Human Rights at the Council of Europe, by the organisation’s Parliamentary Assembly (PACE) at its plenary session in Strasbourg yesterday. The Commissioner for Human Rights is an independent and impartial non-judicial institution established in 1999 by…
The Irish Human Rights and Equality Commission (the ‘Commission’) has welcomed the withdrawal of the appeals filed by the State the against the 2023 Labour Court decisions which determined that An Garda Siochána discriminated against Ronald Boyle and Brian Fitzpatrick on the grounds of age. The Labour Court had ruled that both men were discriminated…
The Irish Human Rights and Equality Commission (‘the Commission’) has today announced that its Chief Commissioner, Sinéad Gibney intends to resign, with effect from 15 March. Sinéad will seek a nomination to run as a candidate for election in June. The Commission would like to thank Sinéad for the contribution she has made in her…
The Irish Human Rights and Equality Commission (“the Commission”) has provided legal assistance to a man who is blind in a discrimination claim under the Equal Status Acts. The claimant was experiencing ongoing difficulties in using the online banking services of a high-street bank. His first difficulty was completing a purchase using online banking. There…
The Irish Human Rights and Equality Commission (“the Commission”) has provided legal assistance to a young person with a disability in a discrimination claim under the Equal Status Acts. The complainant is a 16 year old boy with a diagnosis of Asperger’s Syndrome. He has developed strategies and adaptation skills to support him when carrying…
The Irish Human Rights and Equality Commission (the ‘Commission’) has today brought proceedings before the High Court in its own name, seeking to address the State’s failure to provide for the basic needs, including shelter, of people recently arrived in Ireland and seeking asylum. In papers filed today, the Commission advised the High Court (Hyland…
Commission research finds no constitutional barrier to collective bargaining “The legislature is free to pursue such a course, having careful regard to safeguards that would ensure all other relevant constitutional rights and principles are respected.” – Report New research published today by the Irish Human Rights and Equality Commission (the Commission) has found that there…
The Irish Human Rights and Equality Commission (the ‘Commission’) welcomes a High Court judgement that sets aside a Labour Court Determination in a case about racial discrimination under the Employment Equality Acts. The applicant, Mr Peter Onyemekeihia, is an Irish citizen, originally from Nigeria, and has worked as a prison officer since 2008. During a…
Nationwide survey provides insights on public perception of racism, International Protection and human rights The vast majority of people in Ireland (85%) believe everyone should be treated equally, regardless of who you are or where you come from, while only 30% of people think the government is doing enough to address racism. The insights come…
More action needed to harmonise equality and human rights protections on island of Ireland People all across the island of Ireland should have the same human rights and equality protections, according to a massive 81% of respondents to a new public awareness survey. The poll was carried out in Ireland on behalf of the Irish…