Equality Act 2010
The Equality Act is the most far-reaching discrimination legislation for many years and will have a major impact on every employer.
Our expert speakers will pinpoint those parts of the Equality Act which will have the most impact on employment law.
The Act goes much further than bringing together all the discrimination strands and areas into one statute. It makes major changes to the substance of discrimination law, which will require all employers to review their personnel policies.
The Act was extensively amended as it went through Parliament, with major new clauses being added such as those on combined discrimination, discrimination arising from disability, pre-employment health inquiries and the employer’s defence to equal pay claims.
The first parts of this historic legislation are expected to come into force on 1 October 2010. The Equality Act has 218 sections and 28 schedules. The Act is 239 pages long. The Explanatory Notes are 215 pages. The Equality and Human Rights Commission has been working on a series of detailed Codes of Practice and on guidance explaining the concepts set out in the Act. These should be available by the time of this conference.
The draft Employment Code of Practice is 366 pages and there is draft guidance of equivalent length. There is a separate Equal Pay Code of Practice and a 288-page draft Code on Services, public functions and associations. In addition, we are still awaiting the Regulations setting out specific equality duties on public authorities.
Few employers, or those advising them, will be confident that they have absorbed all this material. That is why a truly authoritative conference such as this is so important to attend.
All delegates will receive a complimentary copy of EOR’s comprehensive multi-part guide to the legislation.
