At the moment,
people may only bring separate discrimination claims relating to
one protected characteristic; such as their age, disability,
gender reassignment, race, religion or belief, sex or sexual
orientation.
But some people still have stereotyped attitudes about certain
groups with a combination of protected characteristics, such as
Asian men or black women.
The new ‘dual discrimination’ clause which the Government wants
to insert in the Equality Bill would allow people to make a claim
if they were directly discriminated against because of a
combination of two relevant protected characteristics.
This would mean, for example, that a black woman who is
discriminated against because her employer has particular
stereotyped attitudes towards black women - as opposed to black
men or white women - could bring a single claim for combined race
and sex discrimination.
Vera Baird, Solicitor General
and Equality Bill Lead Minister, said:
“People’s identities are multi-faceted and complex, and we are
delighted to bring forward an amendment to the Equality Bill which
would reflect this.
“This clause would provide protection for people who at present
would have to guess on what basis they have been discriminated
against, wholly outside their dignity.
“Business will benefit if all the issues in one case can be dealt
with together and there will be better access to justice for all.
“Protection against “dual discrimination” would be a progressive
step forward and confirm our place as a world leader in the fight
against discrimination and disadvantage.”
NOTES TO EDITOR:
· The Equality Bill will cover England, Scotland, and Wales.
Northern Ireland has its own equality legislation.
· The Equality Bill will replace the Equal Pay Act
1970, the Sex Discrimination Act 1975, the Race Relations Act
1976, the Disability Discrimination Act 1995, much of the Equality
Act 2006, the Employment Equality (Religion or Belief) Regulations
2003, the Employment Equality (Sexual Orientation) Regulations
2003, the Employment Equality (Age) Regulations 2006, and the
Equality Act (Sexual Orientation) Regulations 2007 (where
applicable, as subsequently amended), plus other ancillary pieces
of legislation.
· Last summer’s ‘Framework for a Fairer Future - The
Equality Bill’ and the Government’s response to the
Discrimination Law Review can be downloaded from www.equalities.gov.uk
· The Government Equalities Office is responsible for
the Government’s overall strategy, legislation and priorities on
equality issues. It was established in October 2007.
Issued by the News Distribution Service on behalf of the
Government Equalities Office.