Week 8 - Employment Law continued & Alternative Dispute Resolution Flashcards
Discrimination Law
- covered in the Equality Act (EA 2010)
- act saw the Creation of the Equality and Human Rights Commission (EHRC)
- EHRC can Investigate Discrimination and Take Legal Action, though most cases are brought by individuals against Employees on a Case-by-Case Basis
How does Discrimination Law Apply in Employment
- Advertising for Jobs
- Interviewing
- Terms & Conditions, Traning and Promotion in a Job
Protected Characteristics - what are 8 Area of Possible Discrimination that’s Protected by Equality Act
- Age
- Disability
- Marriage / Civil Partnership
- Pregnancy / Maternity
- Race
- Religion or Belief (includes lack of religion)
- Sex / Gender
- Sexual Orientation
Explain Prohibited Conduct in relation to the Equality Act (EA)
- EA 2010 Prohibits Certain Kinds of Conduct that’s Seen as Discriminatory by the Law
- this could be conduct by the Employer Themselves or could be Vicarious i.e. through the conduct of their other employees such as a manager
State the 4 Main Types of Prohibited Conduct
- Direct Discrimination
- Associative Discrimination
- Perceptive Discrimination
- Indirect Discrimination
Explain the Type of Prohibited Conduct - DIRECT DISCRIMINATION
- where a Person (A) Treats somebody (B) Less Well than Someone Else (C) because B comes under one of the Protected Characteristics
- C is called the Comparator
- there Has to Be a Comparator (either real of hypothetical) in order To Assess Whether Discrimination has Occured
- it’s Not a Defence for the Alleged Discriminator to Have the Same Characteristic
- However, there May Be an Occupational Requirement for a Particular Characteristic(s) in Certain Jobs –> Discrimination can Be Justified (but only if crucial to role)
Explain the Type of Prohibited Conduct - ASSOCIATIVE DISCRIMINATION
- where Somebody has been Discriminated Because of Someone they Are Associated With
- Coleman v Attridge Law (2009)
- Mrs Coleman had a Disabled Child and was Subject to Criticims and Insults because of this
- was Ruled to be Discrimination by Association
Explain the Type of Prohibited Conduct - PERCEPTIVE DISCRIMINATION
- where a Person is Discriminated Against because People Perceive (or believe) They Have the Protected Characteristic
- e.g. if Someone is Dismissed Because their Employer Thinks They’re Gay
Explain the Type of Prohibited Conduct - INDIRECT DISCRIMINATION
- Employer May Not Realise that They are Discrimination, but is Doing Something that Makes it More Difficult for Someone to Undertake their Role than Somebody else
- e.g. instilling a rota of unsociable hours for parents with childcare commitments
or a Dress Code that Indireclty Discrimated those with religious Belief - Noah vs Desrosiers -> Muslim woman turned down as she wore headscarf but policy was for stylists to display their hair
State the 3 Types of Harrassment per the Equality Act 2010
(1) Applies to All of the Protected Characteristics ( bar Pregnancy/Maternity)
(2) Sexual Harassment
(3) Treating Somebody Less Favourably than Someone Else because they Submitted to or Rejected Sexual Harrasment
Explain the Type of Harassment per the Equality Act - (1) Applies to All of the Protected Characteristics (bar pregnancy/maternity)
- Unwanted Conduct that Has the Intention or Makes the Person feel Intimidated, Offended or Degraded
- could include Physical Abuse, Offensive Language, Jokes
Explain the Type of Harassment per the Equality Act - (2) - Sexual Harassment
- Conduct of a Sexual Nature that Has the Same Effect as the First Type of Harassment
- could Include Somebody Direcly Receiving Harassment or Those who Feel Harassed due to General Action e.g. If the Manager Displays a Topless Calendar
Explain the Type of Harassment per the Equality Act - (3) Treating Somebody Less Favorably than Someone Else Because they Submitted to Or Rejected Sexual Harassment
- e.g. if an Employee was Turned Down for Promotion Because they Rejected their Manager’s Advances
Explain what VICTIMISATION as per the Equality Act
- occurs When a Person Makes a Complaint About Discrimination (or Supports Somebody Else in their complaint ‘in good faith’) and is Subsequently Not Treated as Well as they Would Have Otherwise Been
- ‘in good faith’ means a Complaint / Support Given is Genuine and Not Falsified for Malicious Reasons
Explain what is POSITIVE ACTION
- Not the same as Positive Discrimination
- Positive Action is Measures Taken by Employers to Alleviate any Disadvantages that Those with Protected Characteristics may Experience
- e.g. promoting a company’s work in inner city schools, offering training courses for women wishing wishing to become managers