The Disability Discrimination Act 1995 makes it unlawful for people to discriminate against someone because of their disability. This makes sure that the disabled are not discriminated against. The Employment Equality (Sexual Orientation) Regulations 2003 bans discrimination against sexual orientation, whether a person is gay, lesbian, bisexual or heterosexual. The Employment Equality (Religion or Belief) Regulations 2003 prohibits discrimination on the grounds of the employee’s religion or beliefs. And lastly, the Employment Equality (Age) Regulations 2006 prohibits discrimination against an employee’s age.
Equal opportunities policies can help reduce discrimination in the workplace and wider society because violating them is illegal. Discrimination at work can be very costly for organisations. A claim of discrimination can cost businesses large amounts of money. Therefore, policies forces businesses to promote equality in their organisation and their staff. Many organisations carry out training sessions to educate their staff about equal opportunities (www.aboutequalopportunities.co.uk/casestudies).
As more and more organisations promote equal opportunities and staffs are trained, more people can become aware and informed that discrimination and inequality should be removed in our society. Over the past 30 years, the workplace has changed dramatically. “Women have become more empowered giving them the opportunity to seek career progression which had previously been denied to them. Disabled people who can work are being helped back to work and offered the same opportunities as able-bodied people and economic globalisation of business has meant that managers must be aware of cultural and race issues” (www.safeworkers.co.uk/EqualOpportunitiesWork.html).
If equal opportunities policies continue to improve, it can result to lesser discrimination and inequality. All employees will have a workplace that is free from unlawful discrimination and harassment. All employees are selected for recruitment and promotion based on their skills, experience and performance. And lastly, they will have equal access to benefits and fair allocations of workloads.
However, equal opportunities policies are far from perfect. Despite legislations and policies, it is still a challenge for some employers to make the policy work and to make considerable improvements. According to Kirton and Greene (2005), some organisations and businesses still have a pay gap between their men and women. They also added that members of the ethnic minorities and disadvantaged groups are usually employed in low paid and/or low skilled jobs both in the public and private sectors as compared to their white counterparts (Kirton and Greene, 2005, p25).
The existence of discrimination in the workplaces is also revealed in the newspapers. An article by Elizabeth Day states that the first transsexual officer in the Army is suing the Ministry of Defence for unfair dismissal and sexual discrimination. Captain Jan Hamilton feels discriminated for being dismissed because of her decision to undergo sex-change surgery. She stated “All I want is to carry on working for the Army in an equal-opportunities capacity...my transition hasn’t changed my ability to be a good serving soldier” (Day, The Mail on Sunday, 2007)
An article by Arthur Martin shows recent research findings on the hidden discrimination that faces women at work. The research discovered prejudice against older women seeking training opportunities because they were seen as offering a poor return on investment. Women over 50 were more likely to be turned down while younger men were usually given money to go on training courses (Martin, Daily Mail, 2007). For more information, both newspaper articles are found in the Appendix at the end of the assignment.
Kirton and Greene’s findings and both articles are all very worrying. They suggest that even though it is illegal to discriminate in the grounds of age, sex, race disability, sexuality, and many others, discrimination still happens in the work place. This may mean that equal opportunities policies are not working and are only there to give businesses and organisations a good reputation.
In my own opinion, I think that there are businesses and organisations that are genuinely against discrimination and inequality, and their equal opportunities policies are working perfectly well. An example that I can give is my current work placement. My work placement deals with people with mental health difficulties. Equality is promoted among all the staff and our clients, and since my time there, no discrimination occurred. However, some workplaces have equal opportunities policies that do not fully work.
For example, after being interviewed for the receptionist position in a nearby hotel, I had a quick look in the reception where I saw all receptionists that are females, young and quite pretty. I had a feeling then that my chances of getting the job may be very slim. It turns out I was right. Another example is my recent employment at a big supermarket. It is very noticeable that almost all the staffs that are getting picked from managerial training program are all young, white men. In addition, in my 4 years of employment there, we have had 3 different general managers, and they are all white and males.
Bibliography
Day E. (2007) Captain Jan, the transsexual Para, sues the Army for unfair dismissal. The Mail On Sunday, 15th July 2007
Equal Opportunities (2011) Understanding Equal Rights and Discrimination Policy [internet] Available from: [accessed April 2011]
Kirton G. & Greene A. (2005) The Dynamics of Managing Diversity: A Critical Approach, 2st Edition, Oxford, Butterworth-Heinemann Publications
Martin A. (2007) The hidden bias that still hampers women at work. Daily Mail, 13th January 2007
Safe Workers (2011) Equal Opportunities at Work [internet] Available from: [accessed April 2011]
APPENDIX
by
5arapmobaby (student)
