EQUALITY ACT 2010

The Equality Act 2010

The Equality Act 2010

Introduction

This discussion will attempt to present a discussion on The Equality Act 2010 in conjunction with the Employment Rights Act 1996. The discussion will highlight the increasingly difficult for an employer to dismiss an employee (who qualifies as disabled under the Equality Act), without incurring substantial financial expenditure.

The Equality Act 2010 consolidates and repeals most of the existing non-discrimination legislation, including the laws on religion or belief discrimination. The Act protects 'religion and belief' alongside seven other 'protected characteristics': age: disability: gender reassignment; marriage and civil partnership: race: sex; and sexual orientation. It outlaws the 'prohibited conduct' of direct discrimination, indirect discrimination, harassment and victimisation in relation to areas such as goods and services, premises, employment and education. In respect of religion or belief discrimination, it remains the case that harassment is not prohibited in relation to goods and services (Griffith, 2010). The Act also includes a number of religious exceptions, which were previously found within various different pieces of discrimination jaw. They can now be found in the Schedules to the Act.' The Act also extends the public sector duty to religion for the first time. This would place a duty on public authorities to pay 'due regard' to the need to 'remove or minimise disadvantages suffered by persons' on grounds of religion or belief, to take steps to meet their needs and encourage them to participate in public life.

The Equality Act 2010 shows how discrimination law is underpinned by the premise that religion or belief can be protected in the same way and largely to the same extent as the other protected characteristics. However, this premise may be questioned. As Sedley U held in Eweida v. British Airways,' whilst all of the other protected characteristics apart from religion or belief 'are objective characteristics of individuals: religion and belief alone are matters of choice. Although this is, of course, somewhat of a simplification, it serves to highlight concerns that religion or belief is different from the other 'protected characteristics' and ought to be protected differently (Ntlama, 2010). Freedom of religion protects the subjective belief of an individual. This is not true of the other protected grounds. Throughout this chapter, we will see whether this tension between religion or belief and the other protected characteristics has affected the ways in which the law has been interpreted.

Discussion & Analyses

The Equality Act prohibits discrimination against employees and job applicants on the basis of their protected characteristics. There are limited exceptions to this where there is a genuine occupational requirement for a position or in some disability cases (Newson, 2011). This will soon extend to positive action. Subject to various caveats, an employer who selects a candidate from a protected group will have a potential defense if their decision is ultimately challenged.

In summary, s.159 provides that where an employer "reasonably believes" that a candidate with a "protected characteristic" suffers a "disadvantage or are underrepresented" in the workplace, they can afford that person "more favourable treatment ...