Government will not redress a Bermudian woman's complaint even though the Human Rights Commission ruled that she was discriminated against when her job was given to a foreign worker.

And despite the 13-page HRC's decision dated August 28, 1991 and letters to the Attorney General's chambers and Labour Minister Quinton Edness, Mrs.

Delores Lightbourne claims she is yet to receive justice.

Mrs. Lightbourne is seeking one year and three months wages, interest on that sum and continual pay as long as the non-Bermudian worker is employed by the family she used to work for.

However, she is worried that the statute of limitations may run out before she is able to have her case heard in a court of law.

Consequently, she has written a letter calling for action on her case to Mr.

Edness who said he is unable to do anything for her.

"I want Government to make the Immigration department live up to its own laws,'' she said.

"They are blatantly violating their own laws and the Attorney General's chambers is backing them right up.

"I want this case prosecuted because it is in the interest of all Bermudians that this is not covered up.'' Solicitor General Barrie Meade wrote a letter dated July 26, 1996 to Mrs.

Lightbourne in response to a letter she wrote to them on July 1, 1996.

It said: "Having taken into consideration the matters raised in your letter, the Attorney General is not prepared to reconsider his position.'' This means that there are no plans to do anything further on her behalf.

Mrs. Lightbourne was employed temporarily for eight months as a companion/housekeeper but a non-Bermudian replaced her on August 11, 1990.

The matter was taken to the Human Rights Commission and their investigation found that Mrs. Lightbourne's rights were violated because she was a Bermudian.

"The rights of Mrs. Delores Lightbourne were breached because of her place of origin,'' the HRC ruled.

"That is to say the respondents chose to dismiss Mrs. Lightbourne because she is Bermudian and did employ in her place a Philippine national.'' Moreover, the HRC found that the only reason for dismissing Mrs. Lightbourne was economic because a professional nurse specialising in geriatric care testified to the HRC that the foreign worker that was subsequently employed was unskilled.

During its investigation, the Commission found that Mrs. Lightbourne was hired on a temporary basis while a search was being conducted for a permanent companion/housekeeper.

However, her employers found her fees too expensive and could not employ her at the $10 per hour that she asked for.

The HRC also found that her employers claimed that the elderly woman Mrs.

Lightbourne was taking care of had bed sores because she had been left in her own urine.

The Commission said that despite these complaints her employers never informed Mrs. Lightbourne of their concerns or gave her an opportunity to adjust her hourly rate.

Bermudian woman rebuffed in search for justice Although she was hired on a temporary basis, the Commission found that her "employers had no intention of employing a Bermudian on a full-time basis.'' The position was advertised from October 18 to 20 in 1989. Her employers applied to the Department of Immigration for permission to go overseas to fill the position.

At the time one Bermudian applied for the post but was found unsuitable because she could do no heavy lifting.

Mrs. Lightbourne had been given the job on a temporary basis, but the Immigration department was not informed of this.

The Commission said it was concerned that Mrs. Lightbourne was seemingly misled when she applied directly to the family for the job on October 23, 1989 in response to their advertisement.

At that time she was informed that permission in principle to hire from overseas had been sought although the purpose of local advertising is to find out whether there are any qualified Bermudians available.

The HRC found that the department of Immigration granted the family permission to go overseas to find someone on November 24, 1989 when Mrs. Lightbourne "a qualified and capable Bermudian commenced work (temporarily) on October 23, 1989.

The only time the department of Immigration learned of Mrs. Lightbourne was when she complained of unfair treatment.

The family had hired UBP MP Mrs. Grace Bell, owner of Houseprouds, a domestic placement agency, to find a permanent worker.

She placed the ads in The Royal Gazette but she did not know, the HRC found, that Mrs. Lightbourne was performing the job when she (Bell) went to the Immigration department for permission to recruit someone from overseas.

Shadow Labour Minister Alex Scott said that Government has "intentionally ignored'' Mrs. Lightbourne.

"(She) has neither been reimbursed for the injustice she has experienced nor has she had the UBP Government both acknowledge and support her long and financially exhausting struggle.

Mr. Scott said Mrs. Lightbourne must not be denied by "ministerial tricks and Government technicalities.'' Mr. Edness, meanwhile, said he was aware of Mrs. Lightbourne's case.

"This happened a long time ago,'' he explained. "And the person she is claiming that unfairly dismissed her is dead and gone.

"The Attorney General ruled that the case could not be dealt with any further and there is nothing further that we can do for Mrs. Lightbourne even though she has felt for a long time that she has been treated unfairly.''