Toilet cleaning claim disallowed

A "very sloppy" claim on behalf of 15 women sales assistants, who have to clean staff toilets at a Tesco supermarket in Celbridge, has been disallowed. The women's union Mandate is appealing the decision to the Labour Court. The equality officer, Ms Geraldine Coyle, rejected a discrimination case because Mandate failed to identify the women rostered to do the cleaning work. The union had told Ms Coyle that Tesco discriminated against 15 junior sales staff, all women, by confining toilet cleaning duties to them. However, Ms Coyle said the failure to associate a specific individual with the specific act complained of meant there was no claim for her to investigate. "In making this claim on behalf of the claimants the union has been very sloppy," she said.