The Equality Act 2010 works to protect people from discrimination in the workplace (as well as in wider society). The act pushes for a consistency across the business world so that employees and employers all comply with the laws to create fairer workplaces up and down the country. Under the Equality Act, it is illegal to discriminate against someone because of “protected characteristics”.
These are a set of identifying traits that are protected by law and include age, disability, religion, race, sex and sexual orientation among others.
The UK’s general election has been set for July 4, with the polls strongly leaning towards a Labour government. What will the implications of a Labour government be for the Equality Act?
Expansion of the Equality Act 2010
Labour will implement the socioeconomic protected characteristic of the Equality Act, also the socioeconomic duty under Section 1 of the Equality Act and ensure equality impact assessments of government policy are conducted.
Labour will also introduce a new Race Equality Act which will introduce ethnicity pay gap reporting for large employers, including requiring comprehensive action plans to tackle structural inequalities faced by Black, Asian and ethnic minority people at work.
Dual discrimination rights
Labour have committed to expanding the Equality Act 2010 to enact protections against dual discrimination. This is where a person faces discrimination because of a combination of protected characteristics, such as a Muslim woman abused for wearing a headscarf, a person who is gay and disabled, or a woman experiencing discrimination during menopause. The new rules would allow a person to bring one discrimination claim for multiple instances of discrimination, and potentially free up more tribunal resources.
Public sector equality and diversity tracking requirements
Labour would require public service employers, including the NHS, schools, councils and the police, to collect equality and diversity data and report on staffing, pay, as well as different outcomes by ethnicity. Given the commitment to enabling equal pay claims based on ethnicity, it will be important for public sector employers to understand their pay gaps based on ethnicity and disability, as well as gender. Labour are hoping the reforms result in an extra £26bn for ethnic minority workers.
Equal pay, Menopause, and sexual harassment
Labour have pledged to expand the rights that women have to make equal pay claims to Black, Asian and Minority Ethnic workers, alongside disabled workers. This will mean equal pay claims on the basis of ethnicity and disability will be treated the same as those made by women.
Read more on Labour’s plans for equal pay here.
Angela Rayner also committed Labour to introducing a statutory right for menopause leave for women who are suffering from symptoms of menopause, with Labour to require large employers with more than 250 employees to produce menopause action plans.
Read more about Labour’s plans for menopause leave here.
Despite being pledged for years, Labour have committed to amending the Equality Act to introduce a legal duty for employers to take all reasonable steps to prevent sexual harassment, likely backed up by a failure to prevent offence if appropriate policies, training and reporting mechanisms are not in place.
Read more about Labour’s plans for tackling sexual harassment here.
Amendments to the Equality Act?
The Conservatives recently announced plans to amend the Equality Act so that protections it affords on the basis of a person’s sex will only apply to their biological sex. They claim that this pledge will make it simpler for service providers for women and girls, such as those running sessions for domestic abuse victims, to stop biological males from taking part.
However, Labour has largely dismissed the announcement, saying there was no need to amend the Equality Act. Shadow defence secretary John Healey responded to the Conservative’s plan saying that the change was not needed adding that it was “an election distraction from the really core issues that matter to people”. He did add, though, that the Equality Act “already protects single sex spaces for biological women” but acknowledged there was a need for “clearer guidance”, something he said Labour would produce.
Compliance and the UK General Election – Special Webinar
Every sector could be impacted and every area of compliance is likely to be reviewed by the next government. From overhauls of financial services regulation, reviews of data protection law, closer alignment with EU regulations and an expansion of health and safety protections, the next parliament will see compliance at the centre of the regulatory agenda.
With everything from whistleblowing reform to overhauls of corporate governance, new employment rights like menopause leave and expanded equal pay rules, alongside crackdowns on tax evasion and expansion of the money laundering regulations, organisations large and small should prepare for the outcome of the general election.
This webinar will cover:
- What the main parties are pledging on key compliance areas
- Potential changes to legislation including the Equality Act, sexual harassment and employment rights
- Expected legislation on AML, bribery, sanctions, fraud and economic crime
- Possible expansion of regulations around GDPR, AI and health and safety
- Preparing your organisation for future regulatory changes and new requirements
