The Equality Act

2010
Course notes
The Equality Act 2010

Video Transcript

Female Voice Over: The Equality Act 2010 establishes a

framework to protect people from discrimination and
harassment. The Act provides protection during
employment and beyond to a wide range of people,
including job applicants, employees, former employees,
people who are working under a contract of apprenticeship,
contract workers, and people who undertake work
experience. The Act sets out four different types of unlawful
conduct: direct discrimination, indirect discrimination,
harassment, including sexual harassment, and victimisation.

It also identifies nine protected characteristics: age,

disability, gender reassignment, marriage and civil
partnership, pregnancy and maternity, race, religion or
belief, sex, sexual orientation.

Direct discrimination occurs when a person is treated less

favourably because of a protected characteristic or a belief
that they have a protected characteristic. Harassment,
including sexual harassment, occurs when unwanted
behaviour related to a protected characteristic violates your
dignity. Indirect discrimination occurs when a practice,

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policy or rule applies to everyone. But it has a worse effect
on people who share a protected characteristic.

For example, if a workplace had a rule against big hairstyles

or that hair must be neat and look professional, this could
be indirect discrimination because of race.

Lastly, employers have the duty to make reasonable

adjustments for people with disabilities. So, if a policy or
physical feature in the workplace puts a disabled person at a
substantial disadvantage, the employer must take
reasonable steps to avoid the disadvantage.

This document is the property of Access UK Limited.

The information presented is accurate at the time of publication – February 2023