Britain’s Equality and Human Rights Commission (EHRC) has released updated guidance for those placing or publishing advertisements to help ensure they are lawful and non-discriminatory.
A discriminatory advert is one that restricts jobs, goods, services, or facilities to individuals with a protected characteristic as defined by the Equality Act 2010. Such restrictions are unlawful, except in very specific circumstances where the Equality Act permits them.
The revised guidance offers enhanced clarity on ‘occupational requirements’ under Schedule 9 of the Equality Act 2010. This provision allows an employer to require a job applicant or employee to have a particular protected characteristic if it is essential for the role.
The EHRC has identified instances where employers have incorrectly applied occupational requirement exceptions, particularly concerning the protected characteristic of ‘sex’.
The updated guidance specifies that when an occupational requirement pertains to ‘sex’, it refers to a person’s legal sex as recorded on their birth certificate or Gender Recognition Certificate.
This updated guidance is designed to help employers and individuals understand when adverts are lawful and when they might be unlawful and discriminatory. The EHRC’s review of previous guidance on discriminatory adverts identified the need for updates in certain areas, especially concerning ‘occupational requirement’ exemptions to ensure legal accuracy.
The guidance also explains what constitutes a discriminatory advert, the circumstances under which it is lawful to restrict a job or service to particular groups, how to file a complaint, and the EHRC’s approach to handling discriminatory adverts.
The updated guidance can be found here.
Author
Gill Laing is a qualified Legal Researcher & Analyst with niche specialisms in Law, Tax, Human Resources, Immigration & Employment Law.
Gill is a Multiple Business Owner and the Managing Director of Prof Services Limited - a Marketing & Content Agency for the Professional Services Sector.
