Employment Equality Act 1998

Compliance with statutory requirements etc.

17

17.—(1) In relation to discrimination on the F36[civil status] ground, nothing in this Act shall render unlawful any act done in compliance with any provision of the Maternity Protection Act, 1994, or the Adoptive Leave Act, 1995.

F37[(2) In relation to discrimination on the basis of nationality, nothing in this Act shall render unlawful any action taken in accordance with the F38[Employment Permits Act 2024].]

(3) In relation to discrimination on the age ground or the disability ground, nothing in this Act shall render unlawful any act done in compliance with any provision made by or under—

(a) sections 5, 9, 11 and 16 of the Air Navigation and Transport Act, 1946,

(b) section 12 of the Merchant Shipping Act, 1947,

(c) section 29 of the Transport (Miscellaneous Provisions) Act, 1971,

(d) sections 3 and 8 of the Merchant Shipping (Certification of Seamen) Act, 1979, or

(e) sections 5, 14, 58 and 60 of the Irish Aviation Authority Act, 1993.

F39[(4) In relation to discrimination on the age ground, nothing in this Act shall render unlawful any act done in compliance with—

(a) the Protection of Young Persons (Employment) Act 1996, or

(b) the National Minimum Wage Act 2000.]

Annotations

Amendments:

F36

Substituted (1.01.2011) by Civil Partnership and Certain Rights and Obligations of Cohabitants Act 2010 (24/2010), s. 102(3), S.I. No. 648 of 2010.

F37

Substituted (18.07.2004) by Equality Act 2004 (24/2004), s. 10(a), commenced on enactment.

F38

Substituted (2.09.2024) by Employment Permits Act 2024 (30/2024), s.76, S.I. No. 433 of 2024.

F39

Substituted (8.05.2007) by Protection of Employment (Exceptional Collective Redundancies and Related Matters) Act 2007 (27/2007), s. 27(2), commenced on enactment.

Modifications (not altering text):

C12

Numbering of section clarified (18.07.2004) by Protection of Employment (Exceptional Collective Redundancies and Related Matters) Act 2007 (27/2007), s. 27(1), in effect retrospectively to commencement of Equality Act 2004, commenced on enactment.

27.— (1) The amendment of section 17 of the Employment Equality Act 1998 made by paragraph (b) of section 10 of the Equality Act 2004 is deemed to have had effect from the commencement of that paragraph as if “inserting the following subsection after subsection (3)” had appeared instead of “substituting the following subsection for subsection (4)”.

Editorial Notes:

E22

Power granted to Irish Human Rights and Equality Commission to review enactments specified in subss. (1) to (4) where it is of the opinion that the working or effect of any of these enactments is likely to affect or impede the elimination of discrimination in relation to employment or the promotion of equality of opportunity in relation to employment between men and women, or between persons who differ in terms of any of the other discriminatory grounds (1.11.2014) by Irish Human Rights and Equality Commission Act 2014 (25/2014), s. 30(4), S.I. No. 499 of 2014.

E23

Previous affecting provision: subs. (4) substituted (18.07.2004) by Equality Act 2004 (24/2004), s. 10(b), commenced on enactment.

E24

Previous affecting provision: subs. (4) repealed (25.05.2003) by Redundancy Payments Act 2003 (14/2003), s. 16, S.I. No. 194 of 2003.