Legge 1998, n.21

Employment Equality Act, 1998.

An act to make further provision for the promotion of equality between employed persons; to make further provision with respect to discrimination in, and in connection with, employment, vocational training and membership of certain bodies; to make further provision in connection with council directive no. 75/117/eec on the approximation of the laws of the member states relating to the application of the principle of equal pay for men and women and council directive no. 76/207/eec on the implementation of the principle of equal treatment for men and women as regards access to employment, vocational training and promotion, and working conditions; to make further provision with respect to harassment in employment and in the workplace; to change the name and constitution of the employment equality agency and provide for the administration by that body of various matters pertaining to this act; to establish procedures for the investigation and remedying of various matters arising under this act; to repeal the anti-discrimination (pay) act, 1974, and the employment equality act, 1977, and to provide for related matters. [18th june, 1998] be it enacted by the oireachtas as follows:

art. 1.

(1) This Act may be cited as the Employment Equality Act, 1998.

(2) Except in so far as any provision of this Act provides
expressly for the coming into operation of any such provision,
this Act shall come into operation on such day as may be fixed
by order made by the Minister, and different days may be so
fixed for different provisions and for different purposes.

art. 2.

(1) In this Act, unless the context otherwise requires:
[…]
“religious belief” includes religious background or outlook;
[…]

(omissis)

art. 6.

(1) For the purposes of this Act, discrimination shall be taken
to occur where, on any of the grounds in subsection (2) (in this
Act referred to as “the discriminatory grounds”), one person is
treated less favourably than another is, has been or would be
treated.

(2) As between any 2 persons, the discriminatory grounds
(and the descriptions of those grounds for the purposes of this
Act) are:
[…] (e) that one has a different religious belief from the other,
or that one has a religious belief and the other has not (in
this Act referred to as “the religion ground”)
[…]

(omissis)

art. 12.

[…]
(4) For the purposes of ensuring the availability of nurses to
hospitals and teachers to primary schools which are under the
direction or control of a body established for religious purposes
or whose objectives include the provision of services in an
environment which promotes certain religious values, and in
order to maintain the religious ethos of the hospitals or primary
schools, the prohibition of discrimination in subsection (1), in so
far as it relates to discrimination on the religion ground, shall not
apply in respect of:

(a) the nomination of persons for admission to the School
of Nursing pursuant to clause 24(4) (a) or (c) of the
Adelaide Hospital Charter as substituted by paragraph 5(s)
of the Health Act, 1970 (Section 76) (Adelaide and
Meath Hospital, Dublin, incorporating the National
Children’s Hospital) Order, 1996, or

(b) places in a vocational training course specified in an
order made under subsection (5).
[…]

(omissis)

art. 28.

(1) For the purpose of this Part, “C” and “D” represent 2
persons who differ as follows:

(a) in relation to the marital status ground, C and D have
different marital status;

(b) in relation to the family status ground, C has family
status and D does not, or vice versa;

(d) in relation to the religion ground, C and D have
different religious beliefs or C has a religious belief and D
does not, or vice versa;

(e) in relation to the age ground, C and D are of different
ages;

(f) in relation to the disability ground, C is a person with a
disability and D is not, or vice versa, or C and D are
persons with different disabilities;

(g) in relation to the ground of race, C and D differ as to
race, colour, nationality or ethnic or national origins or any
combination of those factors;

(h) in relation to the traveller community ground, C is a
member of the traveller community and D is not, or vice
versa.
[…]

(omissis)

art. 37.

(1) A religious, educational or medical institution which is
under the direction or control of a body established for religious
purposes or whose objectives include the provision of services in
an environment which promotes certain religious values shall not
be taken to discriminate against a person for the purposes of this
Part or Part II if:

(a) it gives more favourable treatment, on the religion
ground, to an employee or a prospective employee over
that person where it is reasonable to do so in order to
maintain the religious ethos of the institution, or

(b) it takes action which is reasonably necessary to
prevent an employee or a prospective employee from
undermining the religious ethos of the institution.

(2) Nothing in this Part or Part II applies to discrimination
against C in respect of employment in a particular post if the
discrimination results from preferring D on the ground that the
relevant characteristic of D is or amounts to an occupational
qualification for the post in question.

(3) Without prejudice to the generality of subsection (2), in
relation to discrimination on the age ground, the disability ground
or the ground of race, the relevant characteristic of D shall be
taken to be an occupational qualification for a post where on
grounds of physiology or on grounds of authenticity for the
purpose of entertainment, the nature of the post—

(a) requires a person having the same relevant
characteristic as D, and

(b) would be materially different if filled by a person not
having that relevant characteristic.

(4) Without prejudice to the generality of subsection (2), in
relation to discrimination on the religion ground or the ground of
race, the relevant characteristic of D shall be taken to be an
occupational qualification for a post where it is necessary that the
post should be held by D because it is likely to involve the
performance of duties outside the State in a place where the
laws or customs are such that those duties could not reasonably
be performed by a person who does not have that relevant
characteristic or, as the case may require, by a person who has a
relevant characteristic of C.
[…]

(omissis)

art. 44.

(1) Of the ordinary members of the Authority:

(a) two, one male and one female, shall be persons
appointed on the nomination by such organisations
representative of employees as the Minister considers
appropriate,

(b) two, one male and one female, shall be persons
appointed on the nomination by such organisations
representative of employers as the Minister considers
appropriate, and

(c) the remaining number shall be such persons as
appear to the Minister to be persons who have knowledge
of, or experience in-

(i) consumer, social affairs or equality issues,
including issues related to the experience and
circumstances of groups who are disadvantaged
by reference to gender, marital status, family
status, sexual orientation, religion, age, disability,
race, colour, nationality, ethnic or national origin or
membership of the traveller community
[…]

(omissis)