06 Equality Flashcards
What are the different types of discrimination?
- Direct discrimination
- Indirect discrimination
What is the difference between direct and indirect discrimination?
Defined in the Equality Act 2010:
- Direct discrimination - occurs if a person treats, or proposes to treat, someone unfavourably because of a personal characteristic protected by law
- Indirect discrimination - occurs where a person imposes, or proposes to impose, a requirement, condition or practice that has or is likely to have, the effect of disadvantaging people with a protected characteristic, and that is not reasonable
Give an example of a non-ambulatory disability?
Any disability that does not affect walking (e.g. hearing impairment, speech impairment, visual impairment, mental disability, learning disability, dexterous impairment)
What legislation and regulations deal with disabled users of buildings?
- Equality Act 2010
- Approved Document M
- BS 8300
What is the purpose of the Equality Act?
Gives legal protection from discrimination in the workplace and in wider society, for example:
- At work
- In education
- As a consumer
- When using public services
- When buying or renting property
- As a member or guest of a private club or association
When did the Equality Act come into force?
1st October 2010
Does the Equality Act apply across the whole of the UK?
The Equality Act applies to all of the UK, except there are some exceptions to Scotland and Northern Ireland (see s.217)
What legislation has the Equality Act replaced or absorbed?
- The Equal Pay Act
- The Sex Discrimination Act
- The Race Relations Act
- The Disability Discrimination Act
- The Employment Equality (Religion or Belief) Regulations
- The Employment Equality (Sexual Orientation) Regulations
- The Employment Equality (Age) Regulations
What are the protected characteristics the Equality Act protects?
- Age
- Disability
- Gender reassignment
- Marriage or civil partnership
- Pregnancy and maternity
- Race
- Religion or belief
- Sex
- Sexual orientation
What is a disability as defined by the Equality Act?
A person who has a physical or mental impairment which has a substantial and long-term adverse effect on their ability to carry out normal day-to-day activities
Who has a legal responsibility to comply with the Equality Act?
- Government departments
- Service providers
- Employers
- Education providers
- Providers of public functions
- Associations and membership bodies
- Transport providers
How does the Equality Act impact on the built environment and construction?
Those with responsibilities under the Act must make all ‘reasonable adjustments’ necessary to improve services for disabled people, where such people would otherwise be disadvantaged compared to those without disabilities, which includes changing policies and making physical changes to buildings to improve access
How would you assess ‘reasonableness’ under the Equality Act?
- What might be reasonable for one client, may not be reasonable for another
- Factors to consider:
- the type of services being provided
- the nature of the service provider and its size and resources
- the effect of any disability on the individual disabled person
- whether taking any particular steps would be effective in overcoming the difficulty that disabled people face in accessing the services in question
- the extent to which it is practicable for the service provider to take the steps
- the impact on the business
- the financial and other costs of making the adjustment
- the extent of any disruption which taking the steps would cause
- the extent of the service provider’s financial and other resources
- the amount of any resources already spent on making adjustments
- the availability of financial or other assistance
- the impact on the dignity of disabled people
- the inconvenience caused to disabled people
How do the requirements under the Equality Act differ from those under the Disability Discrimination Act?
- The DDA required changes to be made only where it would otherwise be ‘impossible or unreasonably difficult’ for a disabled person to use the service
- Under the Equality Act, only a ‘substantial disadvantage’ needs to be experienced
How does the Equality Act impact planning authorities?
Under section 149, the public sector (which includes planning authorities), through the execution of their functions, have a duty to have regard to the need to:
- Eliminate unlawful discrimination, harassment and victimisation
- Advance equality of opportunity
- Foster good relations between communities
