The Fair Employment Tribunal has awarded nearly £21,000 to a Catholic woman who was discriminated against, harassed and victimised at work and constructively unfairly dismissed.

Helen Scott, 52, was supported by the Equality Commission for Northern Ireland in her claim.

Ms Scott worked as a sales manager from 2011 to 2015 in an East Belfast showroom owned by Stevenson & Reid Ltd, a bathroom, plumbing and heating supplies firm with a majority Protestant workforce.

The discrimination and harassment started after an incident in July 2015 when her line manager, a director, found out he was to attend a meeting in her place and shouted and swore at her in front of colleagues.

As part of the outburst, he shouted “Tiocfaidh ar lá”, which the Tribunal found had “a clear sectarian significance” and that “the ground for using the phrase was the claimant’s religion or political opinion”.

The Tribunal said: “This can only be a threat and is somewhat menacing given that the claimant was the only Catholic working in the showroom.”

Ms Scott made a formal complaint in August 2015, a protected act, after which her employer initiated an investigation into customer complaints against Ms Scott, none of which were contemporaneous.

The Tribunal noted “no attempt was made to gather the details and evaluate the complaints so that an investigation would be fair for the person to be investigated”, and concluded “the reason for the initiation of an investigation process was the claimant’s doing of the protected act”.

Ms Scott went on sick leave on 12 August 2015, during which she continued to be victimised, “irreparably” damaging the “trust and confidence between the employer and the employee”.

The Tribunal found that she had suffered an unfair constructive dismissal and awarded her £20,736 in compensation.

Dr Michael Wardlow, chief commissioner of the Equality Commission, said: “In this decision, the Fair Employment Tribunal has acknowledged the serious effects sectarian harassment can have on individuals and workplaces. This incident of shouting a phrase with a ‘clear sectarian significance’ should have been dealt with properly at the time. Victimisation after a protected act, in this case raising concerns about an incident of harassment, showed a serious deficit in knowledge and understanding on behalf of the company at the most senior level.

“This employer had no written equal opportunities policy. The Commission has clear and specific guidance for employers on how to create and maintain a good and harmonious workplace. This means a working environment and atmosphere in which no worker feels under threat or intimidated because of his or her religious belief or political opinion.”