Discrimination by omission of affirmative actions

Commentary on the judgment of the Superior Court of Justice of the Valencian Community, Administrative Chamber, 134/2021, of February 24

Abstract

Judgment of the Superior Court of Justice of the Valencian Community 134/2021, of February 24, of the Administrative Chamber, annuls the third section 2 b) of annex III of the Resolution of the Regional Government, of August 2018, with the program of public grants for research and innovation in the Valencian Community. The resolution examines the questioned section in light of certain statistical data from previous calls, which showed a situation of de facto inequality of the women researchers both in the application and in obtaining the grant regulated by said section, and considers that its wording failed to comply with the prescription contained in article 11 of Organic Law 3/2007, which regulates affirmative actions in favor of women, and, as a consequence of said omission or inaction, produced indirect discrimination, prohibited by article 6.2 of the aforementioned organic law, which justifies the declaration of invalidity of the contested section.