An Investigation into Gender Bias in the Employment Institutions

Abstract

This paper describes part of the results of a research project undertaken at the Employment Institutions. The purpose of this research was to consider whether, and if so, in what way, the Employment Court and the Employment Tribunal contribute to the general position of greater disadvantage experienced by women workers since the introduction of the Employment Contracts Act. This paper examines reported decisions of the Court and Tribunal over the 1991-1994 period, focusing on personal grievances, and concludes that while the employment institutions' decisions themselves do not disclose a pattern of gender bias, there is evidence of gender bias in the awards 1nade to parties, particularly in awards compensating for humiliation, loss of dignity and injury to the feelings of the employee.