The UK Legislation that Attempts to Protect Employees Against Discrimination - Essay Example

Diversity management on the level of the organization would need readjustment of company policies according to the new law.  

The latest legislation that aims to promote equality and anti-discrimination is the Equality Act of 2010 (Equality Act 2010). This Act is comprehensive legislation that brings together and harmonizes the different laws on equality and discrimination. It supersedes in whole or in part other laws such as the Race Relations Act 1976, Disability Discrimination Act 1995 (Equality Act, ACAS n.d.), Sex Discrimination Act 1975, Sexual Orientation Regulations 2003, Religion or Belief Regulations 2003 (Introduction to Discrimination n.d.), Equality Act 2006, and Civil Partnership Act 2004 (Equality Act, Home Office n.d.). The Act also enhanced protection in specific situations (Equality Act, Home Office n.d.). The law specifically identified the characteristics that should be protected such as age, disability, gender reassignment, marriage and civil partnership, race, religion or belief, sex, and sexual orientation (Equality Act 2010). This categorization simplifies the law and is designed to ensure a fair environment.

The rights and responsibilities under the Act are varied, with some having a) remained the same (i.e. unfavorable treatment of another due to a protected characteristic is direct discrimination), b) changed (i.e. employees can complain of harassment although not directed at them if it can be shown that an offensive environment is created), c) extended as in associative discrimination (i.e. direct discrimination against a person for associating with another who exhibit protected characteristics), and d) totally new (i.e. discrimination arising from disability if a disabled person receives unfavorable treatment because of something that arises from the disability (Equality Act, ACAS n.d.). A family member, friend, or coworker who is treated unfavorably for associating with a person possessing a protected characteristic is discriminated upon, e.g. discrimination of a person whose son is a homosexual (Equality Act, Discrimination 2011).

An action by the organization that affects or impinges upon the rights of an employee based on the protected rights enumerated in the Equality Act would be considered as direct discrimination (Introduction to Discrimination n.d.). Direct discrimination occurs when a person receives unfair or less favorable treatment than another person on account of a protected characteristic. An application for a position that is rejected on account of sex, race, or any other protected characteristic based on the information expressed therein is an example of direct discrimination. Rejection based on a protected characteristic (e.g. age or sex) must be justified.

In indirect discrimination, rejecting applications in accordance with a particular requirement (e.g. career break) that impacts negatively upon the group of people possessing a particular characteristic would be indirect discrimination. A break in career would impact women who get pregnant and delivered a baby or transsexual individuals who underwent gender reassignment. If the requirement is not justified, then the employer is liable to indirect discrimination. Discrimination by association can be exemplified by canceling the promotion of an employee on the ground that her mother who has just suffered an illness has begun living with her, which can affect the performance of her duties at the office (Equality Act, Newcastle n.d.).

The Equality Act also mandates the service providers in the tourism sector to make reasonable adjustments (e.g. signage, large print registration) to ensure that persons with physical disabilities are not discriminated against (Tourism, 2010). Tourism service providers comprise services in the field of tourist attractions, holiday accommodation, transportation, and restaurants (Tourism, 2010). Workplaces in the sector (considered a creative industry) employ from 10 or fewer employees to 200 or more employees. Through positive action, diversity can be promoted in the tourism sector by target-advertising the under-represented groups with protected characteristics. This would promote and increase the applications from the group, and in the process enhance diversity. In positive action, the applicant with the needed skills will be hired and not because of the protected characteristic. The selection though will be from among the applicants that possess the protected characteristic.

Diversity encourages employees from different backgrounds, encourages new talents and new ideas, attracts more customers due to newer demographic marketing strategies, encourages retention of workers (i.e. protected-class workers prefer to work with co-employees from diverse demographics), and lessen the cost of organizations due to less discrimination court cases (Jackson & Mathis 2008). Recognizing diversity in organizations allows a pool of people from different cultures with varying knowledge, skills, and practices. Since the tourism, events and consumer-focused industries cater to people from various cultures and backgrounds, these organizations are able to provide more personalized services to customers that come from different cultures. For instance, a Japanese tourist who can speak less English can be well attended by an employee of Japanese descent who may know Japanese culture and language. Organizations in these industries should encourage diversity in their ranks so that they could provide services that appropriately suit the needs of diverse customers. The Act can effectively promote diversity because employers and organizations are mandated to introduce into their company policies anti-discrimination measures. With the expanded coverage in the law, more acts are included in discrimination which if violated, will create more lawsuits and legal expenditure for the company.