The Dublin District Court has issued an enforcement order against a massage parlour and held it liable for legal costs following “gross” sexual harassment of an employee. Despite the parlour’s continued trading, it has neglected to pay a significant whistleblowing penalty agreed upon in a previous judgement.
This action comes after the Workplace Relations Commission (WRC) made an unprecedented decision to offer the employee a top-of-the-range compensation of five years’ salary for whistleblowing in November. Additionally, the parlour was charged extra for unfair employee dismissal and violation of work rights.
On Monday, when Marie Quirke, the judge presiding over the case in the Dublin District Civil Court, was presented with the case details, the owner of the parlour, who chooses to remain anonymous, was not present. Céile Varley BL, from Abbey Law Solicitors, put forward the motion under section 43 of the Workplace Relations Act-2015 on behalf of the plaintiff, seeking execution of the November tribunal’s decision to award €102,550 to the employee.
Ms Varley indicated the severity of the sexual harassment her client endured, leading to this sizeable award. Notice of the motion served to the business owner in late-January, after he crossed the 56-day payment deadline on December 30 of last year, has also been disregarded.
When Judge Quirke critically inquired about the payment and the respondents’ presence at WRC, Ms Varley confirmed the absence of both. The judge was also informed that the parlour remains in operation and that the respondents had ample warning for both the claim at the WRC and the enforcement application at the District Court.
Given the sensitivity of the case, an anonymity order has been applied to the details of the worker, the business, and its administration.
In response to all this, Judge Quirke agreed to the order and assigned court fees and legal costs per the rules of District Court. Ms Varley’s initial revelation that the matter was handled privately by the WRC resulted in an anonymity order for the matter’s details.
Judge Quirke mandated the courtroom emptied, however, granted a press representative the permission to stay. According to records, during the case review last year, arbiter Michael MacNamee noted that the employee, who began working in the spa in 2019, informed him that customers were requesting for “extra services of a sexual nature”.
After reporting this to the pair managing the spa, they took her out for a meal, and confirmed she was allowed to comply with the clients’ requests, also advising her on the acceptable rates to charge, the employee told WRC. The supervisors assured her she had the right to reject – yet, they insinuated she wouldn’t attract more clients if she did, the employee revealed to WRC.
Additionally, the woman alleged the male supervisor often demanded she give him unpaid massages and often “crossed the line”, cohercing her to either touch him inappropriately or offer him sexual favours. She rejected his requests, which led to the female supervisor belittling her and reducing her shifts. Eventually her employers denied paying her if she didn’t attend to at least four clients a day – this left her unanswered for payment on numerous occasions.
Upon her return from a holiday in early 2022 she discovered she was no longer on the spa’s work schedule and was advised by her employers to look for alternative employment.
Mr MacNamee asserted there was a clear correlation between the worker’s refusal to offer sexual services and the consequent penalisation. He expressed utmost concern over the continual demands for sexual favours by the male manager. A fine of €91,000, exempted from tax, was issued for whistleblower penalisation, in violation of the Protected Disclosures Act 2014.
Further penalties for wrongful termination and other employment right infringements, brought the total damages awarded to the worker, due to her grievances, to €102,550.
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