Discrimination in the workplace

Under the Equality Act 2010, a person is protected from discrimination throughout the employee lifecycle including recruitment, training and promotion. This Act sets out the main types of discrimination, including the personal attributes or characteristics which the law protects.

This factsheet provides an overview of the law relating to discrimination in the workplace, exploring the types of discrimination and how these apply to the nine protected characteristics.

Types of discrimination
Age discrimination
Disability discrimination
Gender reassignment discrimination
Marriage and civil partnership discrimination
Pregnancy and maternity discrimination
Race discrimination
Religion and belief discrimination
Sex discrimination
Sexual orientation discrimination
Good employment practices
Further reading

Types of discrimination

The different types of discrimination within the Equality Act 2010 are:

• direct
• indirect
• associative
• perceived
• victimisation
• harassment.

Direct discrimination

This occurs when treating someone less favourably than another because of a protected characteristic.

For example:

Deciding not to recruit an individual because they are disabled.
Promoting or demoting someone because they're of a specific age, regardless of their ability or experience.
Promoting a man in preference to a woman because of their sex.
Refusing to employ an individual because of their race (or ethnicity) skin colour or religion.
Promoting a heterosexual man rather than a gay man because of their sexual orientation.

Indirect discrimination

Indirect discrimination occurs when a rule, policy or procedure is applied which puts a person with a protected characteristic at a disadvantage when compared with other groups/others not holding that protected characteristic (in legal terms, this is known as disparate or disproportionate impact).

To establish indirect discrimination, it is also necessary to show that:

an individual is put at a disadvantage as a result of the disparate impact; an
that the employer cannot show the provision, criterion or practice is a proportionate means of achieving a legitimate aim.

For example:

A criterion that an employee must have at least 10 years’ service before being eligible to apply for promotion, means that employees under the age of 26 cannot gain promotion. This would be unlawful unless the employer could show that there are good reasons for the 10 years’ service in the selection criterion.
An employer requires all employees to work full time. Female employees with childcare requirements may be disadvantaged disproportionately (because women are statistically more likely to have childcare responsibilities). A female employee who has difficulty working full time and is refused part-time or job sharing, would be subjected to indirect sex discrimination unless the employer can show that full-time working is essential, and it cannot accommodate or allow any flexibility.
An arrangement that unsociable shifts must be undertaken by those without childcare responsibilities would disadvantage more men than women (again given childcare responsibilities). Also, as it is currently statistically less likely for same-sex couples to have children or young families, whilst the policy appears to treat all employees without childcare responsibilities equally, in practice it may place LGBT+ staff at a particular disadvantage and amount to indirect discrimination.
All employees are required to arrive at work at 8am and someone who is disabled has difficulty travelling in the rush hour to arrive on time; not allowing the employee to start and finish later might indirectly discriminate against them unless the hours can be justified. The employer would have to show that the need for that start time for every employee outweighs the discriminatory impact. In addition, there is an obligation to make reasonable adjustments for disabled employees and candidates (see below): an employer would have to explain why a late start time is not reasonable.

Associative discrimination

Associative discrimination occurs where an individual is discriminated against because they associate with an individual (or group) with a protected characteristic. For example, harassing a person or treating them less favourably because they are friends with an individual who has a protected characteristic.

It may also arise where unjustified indirect discrimination impacts on those who, whilst not holding the protected characteristic, are also disadvantaged. An example would be excluding a white candidate from recruitment because they live in a postcode area where a rule has been applied to sift out a minority racial group who predominantly live in that area. If an employer decides to exclude any candidate who lives in Tottenham, London, this indirectly discriminates against more black candidates - as that area has a higher black population. The employer could not justify the treatment. A white candidate also living in the excluded area could complain that their exclusion from applying was indirect race discrimination by association, despite not being black.

For example:

Treating someone less favourably by disciplining them for their attendance because they need time of to deal with their child’s disability, when other staff with (non-disabled) children are allowed flexibility and time off.
Treating someone unfairly because they are part of a group of young employees, even though they themselves are older.
Treating someone less favourably because they are married to an Asian person or a Muslim, even though they are not Asian or Muslim themselves.
Treating someone less favourably because their daughter is a lesbian or because their son is transgender.

Associative discrimination does not apply to marriage or civil partnership discrimination.

Perceived discrimination

This type of unlawful discrimination involves treating someone less favourably because it’s perceived (or assumed) that they have a protected characteristic, whether they do or not.

For example:

Refusing to appoint someone because it is thought that they are disabled when they’re not.
Refusing to appoint someone because it's wrongly thought that they are a particular age.
Not recruiting someone because of an assumption they are of certain nationality when in fact they are not.
Treating someone less favourably because it’s perceived that they're gay when they're not.

Perceived discrimination rarely arises in sex discrimination claims but may well arise if a person is assumed to be, for example, transgender.

Perceived discrimination does not apply to marriage or civil partnership discrimination, where the discriminatory treatment must be shown to have been due to the actual status of being married or in a civil partnership.

Victimisation

Victimisation occurs when someone is subjected to a detriment because they’ve made or supported a complaint of discrimination, raised a grievance about discrimination or supported another in doing so. Victimisation also applies if it’s thought that they have issued legal proceedings or supported another person in such proceedings.

A comparator isn't required for a claim of victimisation, the question is whether the individual who is raising the complaint of victimisation has been subjected to a detriment because of their complaint or support of another, so the motive for the treatment is key.

Post-employment victimisation can also occur, is protected, and would be unlawful. For example, refusing to give a reference for an ex-employee who had made a complaint under the Equality Act 2010, threatened to do so or because they gave evidence to support a colleague who raised an internal discrimination grievance. Refusing to employ a candidate because they had brought a discrimination claim against a former employer or another organisation would also be post-employment victimisation.

Harassment

Harassment is defined as “unwanted conduct related to a relevant protected characteristic, which has the purpose or effect of violating an individual’s dignity or creating an intimidating, hostile, degrading, humiliating or offensive environment for that individual”. For example, in a female-dominated workplace, constantly telling derogatory jokes about male stupidity could be unwanted harassment which a male employee finds offensive. It is not necessary for the person who complains to have the protected characteristic however, and a female employee could also say that they found it offensive as the comments relate to the protected characteristic of sex.

The Equality Act 2010 also makes it unlawful to subject a person to sexual harassment. Sexual harassment is defined as: “unwanted conduct of a sexual nature”. This would be conduct which violates dignity, or creates an intimidating, hostile, degrading, humiliating or offensive environment with sexual content or connotation. It also renders unlawful such offensive etc conduct which happens as a result of a person rejecting conduct of a sexual nature or submitting to sexual harassment. For example, making sexual remarks or jokes or making promotion decisions on the basis of sexual advances being accepted or rejected.

The law protects individuals from harassment while applying for a job, in employment and in some circumstances after the working relationship has ended.

In 2023 the UK Government decided not to reintroduce specific legislation making employers liable for harassment that comes from a third party (for example, a customer or a service user). This may be revisited at some point in the future. However, employers may be liable for breach of other legal duties, including breach of contract, direct discrimination and the Protection from Harassment Act 1997. This, and good practice, mean that employers should continue to take steps to protect employees from all forms of harassment within the workplace.

Find out more in our factsheet on harassment and bullying at work.

Positive action

Positive action is about taking specific steps to improve equality in the workplace including improving the representation of people currently under-represented in the workforce. It can be used to meet a group’s particular needs, lessen a disadvantage they might experience or increase their participation in a particular activity. Examples include:

placing job adverts to target particular groups, to increase the number of applicants from that group
statements in job adverts to encourage applications from under-represented groups, such as ‘we welcome applicants from specific under-represented groups’
offering training or internships to help certain groups get opportunities or progress at work
offering shadowing or mentoring to groups with particular needs
hosting an open day specifically for under-represented groups to encourage them to get into a particular field
favouring the job candidate from an under-represented group, where two candidates are ‘as qualified as’ each other.

You must be able to show that positive action is an appropriate way for an organisation to achieve one of these aims and the steps taken have been carefully thought through. Using positive action at work is voluntary. However, public sector employers should consider using positive action to help them comply with their Public Sector Equality Duty. See guidance from the EHRC and guidance from the Government Equalities Office.

Exceptions

There are some limited exceptions which relate to recruitment, dismissal, redundancy or retirement including: age limits, compliance to another law and national security.

There are two exceptions which relate to dismissal, redundancy or retirement and which apply only to some employers or jobs:

having or not having a particular religion or belief (applies only to religion or belief organisations)
having or not having a particular protected characteristic (applies only to organised religions or jobs for the purpose of an organised religion)

There are also specific requirements which employers need to consider if redundancy decisions affect women who are pregnant or on maternity leave.

Equality law allows you to treat a disabled person better – or more favourably – than a non-disabled person. This recognises that disabled people can face greater barriers to participating in work and other activities. See section of Disability below.

Occupational requirement

Where there is an occupational requirement to employ a person with a particular protected characteristic, very limited exceptions may apply. The employer must be able to show that there is a genuine need, taking account of the type of work, the nature of the organisation and its services, and the particular role or context. For example, there may be a genuine occupational requirement to employ a person of a particular race or religion. Another example might be certain hospital or prison work providing special care for one sex. There are also specific exceptions for religious organisations. The requirements must be genuine and proportionate (for example, usually would not be permitted where the role is an administrative function rather than face to face with those to whom the service or work is delivered).

Age discrimination

Age discrimination occurs when someone is discriminated against for reasons relating to age which cannot be objectively justified. Age discrimination has been unlawful in the UK since 2006, with the law now incorporated into the Equality Act 2010. People of all ages can be affected, including younger and older workers, and the growing number of older people in employment makes this group a key focus.

Unlike other areas of discrimination law, under the Equality Act 2010, direct (as well as indirect) discrimination may be objectively justified.

Key points:

The provisions protect people of all ages in employment, in recruitment, promotion, reward and recognition, redundancy and vocational training.
Under the Equality Act it is lawful to have length of service requirements for employment benefits practices as long as the service requirement doesn't exceed five years.
The National Minimum Wage, National Living Wage and statutory redundancy calculations are still related to age, as is the basic award formula used when calculating unfair dismissal awards.
An organisation can have a specific retirement age, but this has to be objectively justified, which is generally extremely difficult for most employers.

It’s unwise, and likely to be unlawful, to base employment decisions on age because age is a poor predictor of performance and it’s misleading to equate physical and mental ability with age. The assessment of people’s skills and capability should be based on competencies, qualifications, experience, potential and objective job-related criteria.

The following are examples of what would be considered good practice keeping in mind age discrimination risks:

Medical assessments: A person’s age shouldn't be used to make judgements about their abilities or fitness. Where such an assessment is required for a role, an occupational health or medical practitioner should be consulted and vocational tests should be considered to test abilities/capabilities. Age shouldn't be used as a factor in physical requirements or to test capabilities (physical or otherwise).
Reward: Pay and terms of employment should be based on personal contributions and standards of job performance rather than on age (or age bias, for example assuming a person has a lower output because of age). Although length of service is often a feature of incremental pay systems the impact should be checked carefully (for both age and sex discrimination). Requiring lengthy periods of service to get to the top of a pay scale should be avoided because it is hard to demonstrate, for example, that there is a difference in ability between someone who has done the role for 10 years vs 15 years.

The EHRC has published guidance on age discrimination and the Equality Act.

Explore our law page on age discrimination for more information or our viewpoint on age-diverse workforces.

Disability discrimination

Disability discrimination occurs when someone is treated less favourably because of their disability or is treated unfavourably for a reason arising from their disability. Protection is also provided against indirect discrimination, harassment and victimisation and there is a duty on employers to make reasonable adjustments for job applicants and employees.

In the Equality Act 2010, disability is defined as a physical or mental impairment which has a substantial and long-term adverse effect on a person's ability to carry out normal day-to-day activities. It covers physical and mental conditions. ‘Long term’ means that the condition must last, or be likely to last, for more than 12 months, or is likely to last for the rest of the affected person’s life. To be included in the definition of disability, a condition doesn’t have to be clinically well-recognised.

Individuals with cancer, multiple sclerosis or HIV/AIDS are protected and considered disabled persons from the date of diagnosis regardless of the impact of their condition. There are other conditions, known as deemed disabilities which gain automatic protection without the need to assess the impact (long term and substantial) such as facial disfigurements.

Many other conditions could potentially be covered, including, for example, chronic fatigue syndrome, schizophrenia, arthritis, diabetes, epilepsy, dyslexia, eczema and depression, dependent on their impact.

Some listed conditions are excluded such as hay fever, tattoos and body piercings (although those with severe disfigurements are protected), a tendency to set fires, steal, or physically or sexually abuse others, and exhibitionism and voyeurism.

It should be borne in mind that not all disabilities are visible, and mental conditions includes learning difficulties and those on the autism spectrum.

Direct discrimination and discrimination arising from disability

The Equality Act gives wider ranging protection against direct discrimination, indirect discrimination and harassment for disabled candidates, workers and employees, as well as imposing positive obligations to make reasonable adjustments to address disadvantages which individuals may face where the workplace, selection criteria and their duties create substantial disadvantage.

Direct discrimination is slightly different here, in that in the case of disabled persons, it is unlawful for an employer to treat someone less favourably because of their disability: which covers circumstances where the employer assumes they cannot do the role – this cannot be justified;
There is a secondary, unique type of protection for disability, which is known as discrimination arising from disability. This occurs when an employer treats a disabled person unfavourably for a reason related to their disability: in other words, not the disability itself but a reason related to it, for example, that they may need time off for treatment. This type of discriminatory action or decision is subject to the duty to make reasonable adjustments. In other words, to assess whether the employer could reasonably accommodate such time off. Only after assessing this aspect, would an employer be able to argue the treatment was justified.

Employers should focus on the impact for an employee at work, not on the disability or condition itself. It is often better to explore the effect on an individual in order to understand their ability to do the job, and address the duty to make reasonable adjustments to alleviate those impacts and support them.

Reasonable adjustments

In addition to the obligation not to discriminate directly or indirectly, and the harassment provisions, an employer has a duty to make reasonable adjustments and should ensure they can objectively justify any decisions or assessments made regarding disabled employees or candidates. If a candidate for employment can undertake the role with reasonable adjustments, an employer would not be able to justify a decision to reject them unless it first considered making reasonable adjustments.

Many people with a disability who could potentially be covered by the act may not necessarily consider themselves to be ‘disabled’, even though they may still need adjustments to support them in the workplace. Employers may need to make adjustments for employees who do not state or think they are ‘disabled’.
Employers should understand the barriers a disabled employee (including those with non-visible disabilities) is experiencing and must put reasonable adjustments in place to accommodate them and alleviate those barriers.
It is important to note that the Equality Act 2010 made it unlawful to issue pre-employment medical questionnaires, except in some limited circumstances.

Some employers take proactive steps to support disabled candidates, recognising that they are underrepresented in the workplace. This is often also accompanied by being positive about disabled people. Some employers guarantee an interview without applying the usual selection criteria for shortlisting to disabled candidates who meet the minimum criteria for a role.

The EHRC has published guidance on disability discrimination.

Explore our law page on disability discrimination for more information or our viewpoint on disability equality at work .

Gender reassignment discrimination

Gender reassignment discrimination occurs when someone is treated less favourably because of gender reassignment, for example, because they are transgender or have a gender identity different from the sex registered at birth. It also occurs where indirect discrimination or harassment is linked to gender reassignment. Gender identity is a person’s innate sense of their own gender, which may or may not correspond to the sex registered at birth. Direct gender reassignment discrimination is when someone is treated less favourably because of being transgender. This covers people whose gender identity differs from the gender assigned at birth. Gender reassignment refers to anyone who has proposed, started or completed a process to change their sex assigned at birth whether through medical intervention or not (for example lifestyle changes).

The Equality Act protects transgender people. There does not need to be any medical process. So, for example, a transgender man who was registered female identity at birth but has a male gender identity and lives as a man would be protected. The EHRC says: “You can be at any stage in the transition process – from proposing to reassign your gender, to undergoing a process to reassign your gender, or having completed it”.

The EHRC has published guidance on gender reassignment discrimination.

Marriage and civil partnership discrimination

Marriage and civil partnership discrimination occurs when someone is treated less favourably or harassed because they are married or in a civil partnership or due to indirect discrimination linked to their marital or civil partnership status. As defined in the Equality Act, the status of being married or in a civil partnership is a protected characteristic and is protected against discriminatory treatment. This concept protects marriages recognised in the UK and civil partnerships recognised in England and Wales (although individuals who may have been married outside the UK or have entered into a civil partnership in another jurisdiction would be protected if the partnership is recognised in the jurisdictions covered by the Equality Act applies – England, Scotland and Wales).

The protection requires that the treatment or discriminatory impact be due to, or a result of, that status. It is singular, in that the provisions do not protect those who are not married and/or not in a civil partnership, where that is the reason for the discriminatory treatment.

Protection linked to marital status and civil partnership is limited to prevent:

Direct discrimination: treating someone less favourably than another because of their marriage and civil partnership status.
Indirect discrimination: applying a provision, criterion or practice which puts persons who are married and/or in a civil partnership at a greater disadvantage, and which cannot be justified.
Victimisation.

The EHRC has published guidance on marital and civil partnership status discrimination.

See our marriage and civil partnership discrimination law page for more information.

Pregnancy and maternity discrimination

Pregnancy and maternity discrimination includes treating someone unfavourably due to being pregnant, or having recently given birth or because of pregnancy-related illness. Maternity discrimination is defined by reference to unfavourable treatment during or on the following bases:

During any period of maternity leave: compulsory, ordinary, additional or an employer’s contractual maternity leave (the latter was added from 1 January 2024 and is referred to as equivalent leave).
Due to an individual seeking to take or taking any form of maternity leave as referred to above.
Due to illness in the protected period as a result of the pregnancy – referred to as pregnancy-related illness.

At the point at which a woman becomes pregnant, they are automatically protected against discrimination. The protection prevents unfavourable (rather than less favourable) treatment due to pregnancy and maternity, recognising that it is not possible to compare a pregnant woman to someone of the opposite sex.

The period between the start of the pregnancy to the end of the maternity leave (whether statutory or not, for example under an employer’s policy) is known as the ‘protected period’ under the Equality Act 2010. The maternity protection to prohibit direct discrimination applies during a woman’s protected period.

If the woman has no right to maternity leave, or if she suffers a miscarriage or stillbirth before 24 weeks of pregnancy, the protected period will end two weeks after the date of childbirth or after the end of the pregnancy.

Employers should consider carefully employment practices which may disadvantage women and should modify these in an appropriate way.

For example, trigger points for managing absence (discounting those relating to pregnancy), selection criteria or other service-related provisions which might discount maternity absence.
The law also gives special protection for individuals who may be impacted by redundancies or restructuring during their pregnancy and maternity leave absence and gives specific rights to return.
In addition, many employers take steps to encourage maternity returners and retention such as enhancing maternity pay, return to work bonuses and flexible working.

The EHRC has published guidance on pregnancy and maternity discrimination.

See our maternity and pregnancy discrimination law page for more information.

Race discrimination

Race discrimination arises when someone is discriminated against due to race or on racial grounds.

In the Equality Act 2010, race includes colour, nationality and ethnic or national origins. A racial group can be made up of one or more distinct racial groups, for example black, white, Chinese, Romanian, black Briton, British Asian, Romany gypsies and Irish travellers. In some circumstances, race discrimination may also be linked to religion (for example, being Muslim, Hindu or Jewish) and such groups would also be an ethnic group (covered in the ethnic origins definition). Although religion and belief is a separate protected characteristic, protection under the race discrimination provisions may exist (or co-exist) if that group meets a specific test which focuses on its shared history/shared descendants and geographical origin, customs and beliefs.

Whether race discrimination includes caste discrimination has been unclear. In its 2018 response to a consultation, the UK Government decided to rely on existing case law rather than introduce new legislation to protect against unlawful caste discrimination.

The EHRC has published guidance on race discrimination and the Equality Act.

See our race discrimination law page for more information and explore our viewpoint on race inclusion in the workplace.

Religion and belief discrimination

Religion or belief discrimination occurs when someone is treated less favourably, indirectly discriminated against or harassed because of their religion or belief in situations covered by the Equality Act 2010. Religion and belief discrimination is unlawful in the UK and religion/belief is listed as a protected characteristic in the Equality Act.

Protection is given to those with any religion, or any religious or philosophical beliefs as well as those without a religion or belief. There is no definitive list of religions or beliefs, and through case law an assessment would be made to ensure that a person’s particular belief impacts their life and behaviour significantly and is worthy of respect in a democratic society. It extends to lack of belief (for example, a person who is an atheist), and beliefs or lack thereof are not limited to religion. For example, a committed vegan may be protected against discrimination, and different denominations (such as in the Muslim and Christian faiths) would be protected.

The EHRC has published guidance on religious discrimination and the Equality Act.

Acas has also produced good practice guidance exploring religion and belief in the workplace.

See our religion and belief discrimination law page for more information or explore our viewpoint on religion and belief.

Sex discrimination

Sex discrimination occurs when someone is discriminated against for reasons related to their sex. Although most sex discrimination occurs against women, it's just as unlawful to discriminate against a man because of his sex. So, it would be direct discrimination to reject a male candidate because of his gender in preference to a female candidate, even if the employer is concerned, for example, that they would not ‘fit in’ with an all-female team. Selection should be on merit.

Indirect sex discrimination claims arise regularly when a woman is seeking more flexible or part-time working. Requiring full-time working, or refusing any homeworking, is likely to amount to a provision (full-time working, no home working or adjusted hours) that most tribunals would consider disadvantages more women than men. If the employee can show disadvantage, the challenge for an employer is demonstrating that the requirement fulfils a legitimate aim and is justified. This means showing that the business’s needs outweigh the discriminatory impact. In satisfying the justification test, an employer would need to persuade a tribunal that not allowing any exceptions is proportionate. The nature of the business and each role will be relevant considerations.

The EHRC has published guidance on sex discrimination and the Equality Act.

See our sex discrimination law page for more information.

Sexual orientation discrimination

Sexual orientation discrimination occurs when a person is discriminated against (directly or indirectly) or harassed for a reason related to their own or another’s sexual orientation. There are a number of terms that can be used to describe a person's sexual orientation. The term 'orientation' is commonly used as an umbrella term covering sexual and romantic orientations. Sexual orientation and discrimination protection has nothing to do with someone’s sexual practices, for example sadomasochism.

The Equality Act 2010 defines sexual orientation as a sexual attraction to:

persons of the same sex (lesbian, gay)
persons of the opposite sex (straight)
more than one gender (bisexual).

The EHRC has published guidance on sexual orientation discrimination and the Equality Act.

See our sexual orientation discrimination law page for more information or explore our viewpoint on sexual orientation, gender identity and reassignment.

Good employment practices

To ensure equality, minimise the risk of discrimination and prevent harassment, people professionals have a key role in creating fair and inclusive workplaces. The EHRC has published a Code of practice on employment. Whilst not legally binding, the codes give important guidance on good practice and failing to follow this guidance may be considered by tribunals or courts.

As part of effective equality, diversity and inclusion and employee engagement strategies, employers should undertake thorough reviews or equality analyses of policies and working practices to remove unfair discrimination and bias.
Employers and HR should consider the following:

Establish inclusion policies: Produce and actively use written inclusion, diversity, anti-harassment and bullying policies.
Review recruitment and selection: Interviewers, and those concerned with selection, should be trained to make recruitment decisions based on objective criteria relevant to the job and personal merit. Undertake thorough reviews of policies and working practices and remove unfair discrimination and bias.
Gather feedback: Seek feedback from employees with disabilities and long-term conditions, ethnic minority staff and other employees through pulse surveys.
Ensure all employees understand their responsibility to treat colleagues with respect: Make it clear the organisation does not tolerate bullying, harassment and discrimination and provide examples of the standards of behaviour required of everyone.