DISCRIMINATION LAW

Discrimination Law

Discrimination Law

Introduction

Equality Act 2010

The Equality Act received Royal assent on April 8, 2010 to become the Equality Act 2010. The law consolidates and replaces all existing equality laws, including the Disability Discrimination Act 2005, the Equal Pay Act of 1970 and the Race Relations (Amendment) Act 2000.

The law seeks to reform, streamline and harmonize the current anti-discrimination laws to support and promote equality.

The Equality Act of 2010 covering nine protected nature, which makes it unlawful to discriminate on the basis of:

*Age

*People with disabilities (or those with a disability is a)

*Gender reassignment (not required to be under medical supervision)

*Marriage and Civil Partnership

*Pregnancy and childbirth

*Race

*Religion or belief (including lack of belief)

*Genre

*Sexual Orientation

The law covers workplaces, facilities, goods and services, and admission and treatment of students and include a number of new provisions, particularly the extension of the obligation to promote equality, public sector equality of opportunity.

Major Changes

There are a number of significant changes in the Equality Act 2010 which has a direct impact on higher education institutions:

*The definition of direct discrimination has evolved to include protection against discrimination based on "association" or "understanding".

*protection against indirect discrimination is explicitly extended disability.

*disability discrimination is replaced by a new type of discrimination - discrimination because of disability.

*Breastfeeding is now explicitly protected to ensure that women are not treated less favorably because she was breastfeeding.

*Protection against discrimination based on pregnancy and motherhood has been extended to the students.

*Limits the use of pre-employment health questionnaires have been introduced which makes it unlawful for an employer to inquire about the health of an applicant for employment, either before a job offer to a plaintiff, or front, including the plaintiff in a pool of screened candidates.

*harassment by third parties are introduced, which makes employers liable for harassment of employees by third parties. This does not apply if the employer knows the employee is harassed at least 2 times.

*double protection against discrimination will protect people who suffer indirect discrimination due to a combination of two characteristics that are protected and allow them to file a single combined claims of discrimination (not applicable to civil marriage and partnership, pregnancy and childbirth).

Public sector equality

The revised public sector Equality Duty is still subject to consultation, but the current proposal consists of a general obligation under the Act itself, and specific duties imposed by regulations.

The general obligation

The new public sector Equality Duty is intended to cover all the qualities to be protected outside of marriage and civil partnerships requires that public sector bodies to take into account because of the need to:

*eliminate unlawful discrimination, harassment and victimization

*advance equality of opportunity between different groups, and

*promoting good relations between different groups

Specific duties

Current proposals for equal rights for certain public sector bodies in England are:

*public body should develop and publish objective equality based on relevant evidence, and publicly stated how they intend to do it (renewed at least every 4 years)

*agency is required ...