AC 3.3 A summary of the main points of discrimination legislation

Falconer (2020) defines the term discrimination as the process of being treated unfairly for a particular reason. On the other hand, the author defines unlawful discrimination as a form of discrimination resulting from unfair treatment concerning specific protected characteristics. The UK’s Equality Act 2010 contains nine critical characteristics. These characteristics are; age, disability, gender, race, religion, sex, sexual orientation, marriage, and pregnancy or paternity. According to Falconer (2020), no minimum length of service is required for any particular employee to bring a claim of unlawful discrimination in the UK. However, it is important to note that both employees and employers can be liable for acts of discrimination within their places of work. That is to mean that a claim of discrimination is brought against employees as well as their employers. Falconer (2020) defines a claim as the amount a judge can award due to the possibility of either an employee or an employer in a discrimination case. The four major types of discrimination identified under the equality act are direct discrimination, indirect discrimination, harassment, and victimisation. Direct discriminations are deliberate discrimination against protected characteristics individuals possess or are thought to possess. On the other hand, indirect discrimination is less deliberate than direct discrimination. It is important to note that these types of discrimination can occur before even a relationship between employees and their employers starts up to when they are parting ways. Hence, all HR professionals need to ensure there is no discrimination throughout their employees’ lifecycles.