Equality Act 2010 - UK

Equality Act 2010 

Overview

The Equality Act 2010 is a UK law that protects people from discrimination, harassment, and unfair treatment in various areas of life, including work, education, and access to services. It brings together and simplifies previous anti-discrimination laws to ensure everyone is treated fairly, regardless of their personal characteristics.

Key Protections Under the Law

The Act makes it illegal to discriminate against someone based on protected characteristics, which include:

  • Age
  • Disability
  • Gender reassignment
  • Marriage or civil partnership
  • Pregnancy and maternity
  • Race
  • Religion or belief
  • Sex
  • Sexual orientation

Main Requirements

  1. Direct Discrimination – Treating someone worse than others because of a protected characteristic (e.g., refusing to hire someone because of their race).
  2. Indirect Discrimination – A rule or policy that applies to everyone but unfairly disadvantages a group with a protected characteristic (e.g., requiring all employees to work on Saturdays, which may disadvantage those with religious observances).
  3. Harassment – Unwanted behaviour related to a protected characteristic that violates dignity or creates a hostile environment (e.g., offensive jokes about someone’s disability).
  4. Victimisation – Punishing someone for complaining about discrimination or supporting someone else’s complaint.
  5. Reasonable Adjustments – Employers and service providers must make changes to remove barriers for disabled people (e.g., providing wheelchair access or flexible working arrangements).

Public Sector Equality Duty

Public organizations (like schools, hospitals, and government bodies) must actively work to:

  • Eliminate discrimination.
  • Advance equality of opportunity.
  • Foster good relations between different groups.

Important Dates

  • Enacted: 8 April 2010
  • Most provisions came into force: 1 October 2010
  • Age discrimination in services & public functions banned: 1 October 2012

Who Must Comply?

  • Employers
  • Service providers (shops, banks, transport, etc.)
  • Schools and universities
  • Public authorities (government, NHS, police, etc.)

Based on Official Document

This explanation is based on the Equality Act 2010 as published on the UK government’s legislation website. For the full legal text, visit:
https://www.legislation.gov.uk/ukpga/2010/15/contents