A 29-year-old man from Arnhem has been given 40 hours community service for writing in an email about a job applicant that he was ‘firstly a dark colour (negro)’.

The email, which caused a national stir last year, was sent to the applicant – Jeffrey Koorndijk of Deventer – by mistake after he applied for a work experience position at the electronics company. Koorndijk then made a formal complaint.

Arnhem district court dismissed the suspect’s claims that the email was a joke and not meant to be discriminatory. The email made it clear the man was being primarily rejected for his skin colour, the court said.