The Equality Act
What is the Equality Act?
The Equality Act is a law which protects you from discrimination. It means that discrimination or unfair treatment on the basis of certain personal characteristics, such as age, is now against the law in almost all cases.
The Equality Act applies to discrimination based on:
Age
Race
Sex
Gender reassignment
Disability
Religion or belief
Sexual orientation
Marriage or civil partnership
Pregnancy and maternity
How does the law protect me from age discrimination?
You are protected from a number of different things under the Equality Act:
As well as the above, the Equality Act also means that public bodies, such as local authorities, hospital trusts and police authorities now have to prevent discrimination. This is called the Public Sector Equality Duty.
Public bodies must consider the needs of people with protected characteristics, including older people, when planning or carrying out their public duties or services. For example, if a local bus service is to be cancelled but it’s used a lot by older people to get to local health services, then this should be considered when the decision is made.
In what situations does the Equality Act apply?
The Equality Act covers a wide range of different types of places and organisations. The law applies to places that provide goods or services, and it also covers employment matters too. That includes, for example:
Is age discrimination ever allowed?
Age discrimination can be legal under certain circumstances. The Equality Act allows for age discrimination when it can be ‘objectively justified’. That means the employer or service provider must show that they have a good reason for discriminating on the basis of age.
For example, an employer could put an upper age limit on a job where very high levels of physical fitness are required and could not be fulfilled by someone older.
What do I do if I have been illegally discriminated against?
How you take action will depend on who your complaint is against but here’s a general guide of what you should do:
Step one: Find out about the complaints procedure for the organisation that you want to complain about. For example:
If it’s your employer, you may wish to talk to your manager, your union or HR
If it’s a shop or hotel, you may need to contact the manager or customer services
If it’s your GP surgery, ask to see a copy of their complaints procedure
Step two: Send in details of your complaint, what happened, and when. Make it clear that you are complaining about age discrimination. It can also help to suggest solutions, for example, if you want an apology or the person responsible to be retrained.
Step three: If you’re unhappy with the response, you may have to go to the next step of the complaints procedure (for example, you may need to contact a head office, ombudsman, or tribunal) or seek some further advice if you’re not sure what to do.