IKEA mum firing upheld (3)

(ANSA) - Milan, November 12 - A Milan labour judge on Monday upheld a sentence finding IKEA had acted correctly in sacking a separated mother of two including one disabled kid who argued she was unable to start work at 7 a.m..
    Rejecting the mother's appeal that the sentence had been "discriminatory", the judge said "the disciplinarily relevant facts contested by the employer have been fully confirmed".
    In April Italy's biggest and most leftwing union CGIL appealed against the original sentence.
    When she was sacked a year ago, co-workers came out for two hours in solidarity with the woman, 39-year-old Marica Ricutti, and have since taken further action.
    Filing the appeal, Filcams CGIL chief Marco Beretta said the unions was "dumbfounded" by a Milan judge's ruling.
    "We will go forward in our legal battle," he said, "because in this case the interests of a multinational were safeguarded, placing them ahead of the needs of a worker".
    The Filcams CGIL chief said the case was one of "gender discrimination".
    The judge ruled that the woman's actions had been "so serious as to damage the relationship of trust between employer and employee, allowing the adoption of a (firing)." This verdict was confirmed by the labour judge on Monday.