Amendments to the Equality Act 2010 Have Come into Force
If you have attended any of our HR Forums over recent months and years you will have heard us talk about The Retained EU Law (Revocation and Reform) Act 2023 which confirms which pieces of EU derived legislation no longer have effect in the UK after what is referred to as the ‘sunset date’ which was the 31 December 2023.
In order to protect certain aspects of law as we know it, The Equality Act 2010 (Amendment) Regulations 2023 (the “Regulations”) has come into force. The purpose of these regulations is to formally bring into UK law certain EU based court judgments which guide the way that discrimination cases under the Equality Act 2010 (the “EqA”) are considered.
Whilst the Regulations do not necessarily change the general understanding of the law as we know it, it is helpful to know that they have formally confirmed the general interpretive understanding of the laws decided in EU case law, as part of the EqA.
The amendments in brief
Direct discrimination on the grounds of sex where a woman is subjected to less favourable treatment because she is breastfeeding is now extended to also applying the working environment, which was previously explicitly excluded in the EqA.
In relation to pregnancy and maternity discrimination specifically, the EqA has been amended to confirm that unfavourable treatment that occurs after the protected period referred to in the EqA, will be discriminatory if it is because of pregnancy or a pregnancy related illness occurring during the protected period.
Amendments have also been made to fall in line with the EU case law position that an individual does not have to share the protected characteristic of a disadvantaged group in order to bring a successful claim for indirect discrimination. This is referred to as indirect associative discrimination.
Direct discrimination has also been extended to cover situations where statements are made regarding not wanting to employ individuals with certain protected characteristics, even if there is no identifiable victim and the statement is made outside of an active recruitment process.
The legal definition of disability is also extended to explicitly include reference to a person’s ability to participate fully and effectively in working life, when considering an individual’s ability to carry out normal day to day activities.
The above provides a brief overview of the changes to the EqA to bring it in line with the general principles of how the law applies in practice, as derived from EU legislation. The amendments came into effect on 01 January 2024.
If you have any questions in relation to these amendments or have any other employment related queries, please contact a member of the Employment Law Team who will be happy to assist.
Amy Hallam
Head of Employment
t: 0114 3496989
e: amy.hallam@brmlaw.co.uk
Ellie Leatherday
Associate
t: 01246 564002
e: ellie.leatherday@brmlaw.co.uk
Jade Taylor
Trainee Solicitor
t: 01246 560587
e: jade.taylor@brmlaw.co.uk
