THE Supreme Court will shortly appoint legal teams to argue for and against the constitutionality of the Employment Equality Bill, which was referred to the court yesterday by the President, Mrs Robinson.
The President announced her decision to refer the Bill for a test of its constitutionality after consulting the Council of State on the matter on Tuesday. The Supreme Court now has 60 days in which to make its ruling.
Teachers' unions yesterday welcomed referral of the Bill to the court. The Bill aims to outlaw discrimination in employment, but teachers' unions have criticised a section which permits religious, educational and medical institutions to give favourable treatment to employees on religious grounds "to maintain the religious ethos of the institution".
Catholic bishops and educational leaders have warned that the future of Catholic education would be jeopardised if this provision was not retained.
At its annual conference yesterday, the general secretary of the ASTI, Mr Charlie Lennon, said that the union had consulted its legal advisers on the possibility of taking a case against the Bill to the European Court of Justice.
"Whatever the outcome of the Supreme Court hearing, the ASTI will continue to support the right of teachers to a private life and to teach without fear of any discrimination in schools", Mr Lennon said.
The ASTI yesterday passed an emergency motion pledging "the continued support of the union and its resources for teachers who face discrimination, including possible court action".
The general secretary of the Irish National Teachers' Organisation, Senator Joe O'Toole, said that the President's decision was a vindication of the INTO's campaign against the Bill. He added: "In our view, it is not just unconstitutional, but also regressive and discriminatory against teachers. Let us hope that the mess created by the churches and the Government together can be cleared up by the Supreme Court."
The assistant general secretary of the Teachers' Union of Ireland (TUI), Mr Declan Glynn, said that referral of the Bill to the court was an enlightened and farseeing decision. The time is now appropriate for legislators to look again at the Equal Status Bill and the Education Bill. There are salutary lessons to be learnt by our legislators", he said.
Meanwhile, the spokesman for the Conference of Bishops, Dr Thomas Flynn, speaking in a personal capacity last night, said that he would be "very surprised" if the Supreme Court did not find the Bill constitutional.
The central issue involved, he said, was not so much the rights of churches as the rights of parents to have their children educated in the ethos of their choice.
The chairman of the Campaign to Separate Church and State, Mr David Parris, said he thought the President's decision was a "prudent move". He was concerned that section 37 of the Bill could allow for "discrimination" in the areas of health and education. The matter was a "serious civil rights issue" with regard to equal opportunity for work, particularly where teachers were concerned, Mr Parris said.