If an employee has been discriminated against, they may demand that the employer terminate the behaviour causing damage to them. Compensation for both pecuniary and non-pecuniary damage may also be claimed (subsections 24 (1) and (2) of the Equal Treatment Act, subsections 13 (1) and (2) of the Gender Equality Act).
The employee must submit the claim for compensation within one year of the date on which they became aware of the damage. Only a court or the labour dispute committee can decide on compensation. If the content of discrimination was that the employee was not hired on the grounds of a characteristic specified in the Act, the person cannot demand to be hired (subsection 13 (4) of the Gender Equality Act, subsection 24 (4) of the Equal Treatment Act).
If the labour dispute body finds that the termination of an employment contract was void, the employee can claim reinstatement. However, if the employer applies for termination of the employment contract, the court or the labour dispute committee will terminate the employment contract on the basis of subsection 107 (2) of the Employment Contracts Act and the employee will not be reinstated. The employer’s request will not be granted if the employee was pregnant or entitled to maternity leave at the time of termination, or if the employee has been elected to represent employees.
The labour dispute body will only terminate the employment contracts of such persons if reinstatement is not reasonably possible, for example if the employer has ceased trading.
If you feel that you’ve been treated unequally, please contact the Equality Commissioner by e-mail at avaldus@volinik.ee or telephone +372 626 9059. The anonymity of the person is guaranteed when contacting the Commissioner.
