Ireland

Academic claims DCU ‘kept her in the dark’ about permanent job while she was on maternity leave

Sociologist Dr Rebecca Murphy accused university of ‘gaslighting’ her in WRC complaint

The university claims the complainant was notified of the vacancy via an email to all staff. Photograph: Alan Betson
The university claims the complainant was notified of the vacancy via an email to all staff. Photograph: Alan Betson
Stephen Bourke
Tue Nov 26 2024 - 19:02

An academic has claimed Dublin City University (DCU) broke its own jobs policy and discriminated against her by keeping her “in the dark” about a permanent job that was advertised while she was on maternity leave.

In a complaint against the university under the Employment Equality Act 1998 Dr Rebecca Murphy, a sociologist employed on a fixed-term contract as assistant professor at the DCU school of nursing, further alleges the college’s human resources department proceeded to engage in “gaslighting” by telling her she had no right to be told directly about the job.

The complaint is denied, with the university having told the complainant that she had been notified by an internal vacancy email in the same manner as all staff.

“Permanent academic jobs are like hens’ teeth, particularly in my field,” Dr Murphy told the Workplace Relations Commission (WRC) at a hearing on Tuesday.

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“To know that the one time I went on protected leave I missed an opportunity was devastating to me. The one time I was away from work for eight months, I missed an opportunity for my family.

“I’m not saying I would have gotten the job – I’m not arrogant – but I would have learned from it [the application process]. That’s all lost opportunity,” Dr Murphy added.

Dr Murphy’s trade union representative, Nicola Coleman of Siptu, said the university broke its own policy which stated staff on maternity leave “will where possible be notified of vacancies by the head of school”.

“At no stage did the head of school say there will be a vacancy coming up. There was no communication – she was kept in the dark about it,” Ms Coleman said.

The university, which was represented by Laura Kerin of Ibec, countered that the wording of the policy made it discretionary and that as Dr Murphy still had access to her emails she was treated no less favourably than anyone else in the university.

Dr Murphy said she was absent on maternity leave from June 2023 to March 2024 – and only learned upon her return to work that there had been a new assistant professor in social sciences who had secured a permanent appointment at the school of nursing.

Dr Murphy said that when she quoted the maternity policy to the college’s HR department, the response was that there was “an obligation [on] employees on any kind of leave to familiarise themselves with vacancies” as there was a “high volume” of posts being advertised and it was “not always possible for line managers to reach out”.

“I just felt like they were completely gaslighting me and telling me I hadn’t a right to be told directly,” Dr Murphy said.

After some engagement between Siptu and DCU, she complained to the WRC in May this year, the tribunal was told

“I don’t want to be seen as a troublemaker. I’m a precarious academic – I fear for the impact this may have on my future,” Dr Murphy said.

“We don’t have a mortgage, I don’t have permanency, we don’t have a home. When’s the next opportunity going to come? Two years? Five years? That upset could have been fully avoided.”

Adjudicator Valerie Murtagh closed the hearing and is expected to give her decision in due course.