If you own or run a business, it's important to ensure that your business is complying with equality and diversity legislation.
How can you be sure that equality and diversity legislation is being followed in the workplace? Firstly, you need to understand what types of discrimination can be present in the workplace: Age Unless there is a reason that an employee's age would disallow them from being able to work in a certain position, age should not be a factor in the hiring and promotion of employees.
Religion & belief It is unlawful for an employer to treat employees differently based on their religion, belief, or lack thereof.
Unless the job explicitly requires something that goes against a religious belief, and there's no possible way for the employer to accommodate the beliefs of an employee, employers must make accommodations for religious beliefs.
For clarification purposes: Religious discrimination: Paying religious employees more than non-religious employees.
Not religious discrimination: Requiring a butcher to handle pork, which is considered an unclean meat by the Jewish and Islam religions.
Disability Reasonable accommodations must be made for disabled employees.
Examples of reasonable accommodations include modifying the workplace to make equipment more accessible to disabled employees, allowing time off for rehabilitation, and allowing an employee to work from home if the job can be completed in this manner.
For clarification purposes: Disability discrimination: Terminating an employee because they've missed work due to hospitalisation related to their disability.
Not disability discrimination: Declining a paraplegic applicant for a construction site job, as accommodating the applicant would require financial hardships to the employer.
Gender Employees cannot be treated unfairly because of their gender, marital status, or because they have children.
Race A person's national origins and skin colour should not determine how they are treated in the workplace.
It is unlawful to discriminate against an employee or treat them unfairly because of their race.
Sexual orientation No employee should feel discriminated against or harassed due to sexual orientation, whether they be straight, gay, lesbian, bisexual, or trans-gender.
Following the guidelines set forth in equality and diversity legislation ensures that your business will not be cited, fined, or sued for discrimination.
Having to implement a policy to enable your company to fulfil employment law requirements should not be viewed negatively.
A diverse workforce can be a benefit to a company's success in the long term.
Investing in the set up and monitoring of such a policy can provide a good return and also protect against accusations.