The High Court has upheld a finding of the Labour Court that the Mid Western Health Board was guilty of sex discrimination in appointing a man to the post of acting matron at Limerick Regional Hospital.
The appointment of the man to the post of acting matron/locum director of nursing was for six months while the matron was on maternity leave from October 1998.
The Irish Nurses' Organisation, on behalf of Ms Maura Fitzgerald, the acting deputy matron of the hospital, had claimed she was entitled to hold the position while the matron was on leave, and both SIPTU and the INO had objected to the board's decision to hold interviews for the locum position.
It was claimed the failure of the interview panel to appoint Ms Fitzgerald, who had previously acted in the matron's position when the latter was absent, constituted discrimination on grounds of gender.
The board, it was further claimed, was guilty of indirect discrimination in that a man was appointed to a managerial position in an overwhelmingly female profession which had a disproportionate number of men at managerial level.
The claim of gender discrimination was upheld by the Labour Court oApril 2nd, 2003. The court directed that the board pay Ms Fitzgerald the difference in pay which she would have received had she secured the locum position, and the equivalent of £6,000 in compensation for distress as a result of the discrimination.
There was no finding in relation to the claim of indirect discrimination.
The board appealed the Labour Court's decision to the High Court and, in a reserved judgment yesterday, Mr Justice Butler upheld the Labour Court's decision.
The judge said he was satisfied there was evidence that the creation of the "new" post effectively usurped the functions of the job Ms Fitzgerald already held. This was of sufficient significance for the Labour Court to raise a presumption of discrimination.
He also rejected arguments that the Labour Court failed to give weight to evidence as to why Ms Fitzgerald was not permitted to act up in the post of matron/ director nursing, and why there was a decision to hold interviews for that post. He was satisfied the determination was based on sustainable findings of fact.