Discrimination complaints submitted to Government equality body up 1,700%

The number of complaints to a Government equality body increased by 1,700 per cent between 2000 and 2001, according to its director.

Ms Melanie Pine, speaking at the presentation of the annual report of the Office of the Director of Equality Investigations, said that there had been nine complaints to her office in the first quarter of 2000 and 163 in the same period this year, marking an increase of more than 1,700 per cent.

This compared, she said, with an increase in the number of equality officers from four to 15, or less than 200 per cent. The level of complaints posed a "huge challenge", she added.

Ms Pine's office, which works closely with the Equality Authority, was established in October 1999 under the auspices of the Employment Equality Act, 1998 and the Equal Status Act, 2000.

It investigates and makes decisions on cases where discrimination is alleged in relation to access to services or to employment equality.

Complaints may be referred on nine grounds: gender, religion, marital status, age, family status, disability, sexual orientation, race, and membership of the Travelling community.

The employment-related case load between 1999 and 2000 rose by 135 per cent, from 59 to 139.

"While we received complaints on all grounds including family status, gender (at 49 per cent) continued to be the dominant ground . . . Age (12.9 per cent) and disability (17 per cent) were the other two major related grounds on which complaints were referred."

There had been a "virtual explosion" this year in the number of complaints referred under equal status legislation, she said. Some 80 per cent of these were taken by Travellers, while age, disability and gender accounted for most of the rest.

Her office was receiving over 100 equal status complaints a month "and we expect this pace to continue.

"By the end of the year we anticipate we will have received at least 300 employment complaints and 1,000 equal status complaints."

The Minister for Justice, Mr O'Donoghue, said it was encouraging to see legislation "operating effectively to combat discrimination and working towards a more equality-conscious and inclusive Ireland.

"I am confident any challenge facing the office will be met."