Dianne Willmore, who passed from mesothelioma in 2009, won a landmark £240,000 case, holding Knowsley Borough Council liable for her asbestos exposure during school. Her case prompted legal and financial ramifications for local authorities nationwide, leading to increased awareness and changes in asbestos-related negligence proceedings.
The Employment Equality Acts 1998 to 2011 (“The Acts”) prohibit g discrimination in a wide range of employment areas including most particularly recruitment and promotion; equal pay; working conditions; training or experience; dismissal and harassment including sexual harassment. The Acts also apply to employers, providers of vocational training, employment agencies and employment advertisers.
The Acts define discrimination as treating one person in a less favourable manner than another person based on any of the following 9 grounds:
- Gender
- Civil status
- Family status
- Sexual orientation
- Religion
- Age
- Disability
- Race
- Membership of the Traveller community.
There are also two types of discrimination, namely direct and indirect.
To prove direct discrimination, a direct comparison must be made and in the case of gender discrimination, the comparison must be mad, for example, between a male and another person who is not male.
Indirect discrimination can occur in the workplace when the employer applies a condition to everyone in the place of employment but it is a condition that fewer people of one gender than another is able to conform with. It can also happen where a requirement that may appear non-discriminatory adversely affects a particular class of persons.
The employer must be able to objectively justify that a particular condition is for a legitimate aim and that the means of achieving that aim are appropriate and necessary in order to dispute the indirect discrimination claim.
If an employee feels they have been discriminated against on grounds of gender, they can make a complaint to the Equality Tribunal who will investigate and they can also mediate on such claims under the Acts. A Tribunal mediator will assist parties to reach a mediated agreement which is legally binding. If the parties concerned object to mediation, the case will be heard by a Tribunal Equality Officer, who will hear evidence from both parties and they will issue a legally binding Decision.
For more information about Gender Discrimination in the workplace please contact us at [email protected] or on 01-5313800.
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Clodagh Magennis
Head of Client Services
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