While the latest Employment Tribunal Service statistics show that the average award for age discrimination claims nearly tripled in 2010/11 , many other types of discrimination claims saw drops in the size of the average payout. Laura Chamberlain exami  More...
12 September 2011 14:47

Two recent cases have thrown up some interesting issues in relation to sexual orientation discrimination in the workplace, including whether or not an employee's own conduct can be taken into consideration when deciding if harassment has taken plac  More...
02 September 2011 14:12

It has come to my attention that two of my employees may be having a romantic relationship. What should I do and be aware of? Should I have a policy on this sort of thing? Your first task is to work out whether this relationship is real (you refer o  More...
30 March 2011 12:22

Most of the Equality Act 2010  came into force on 1 October 2010 and employers need to make sure they comply with the  changes to legislation. Warning: This page is no longer updated. It has been   More...
22 September 2010 15:19

The Government yesterday confirmed that the main provisions of the Equality Act 2010 will come into force on 1 October 2010, and has made transitional provisions concerning discriminatory acts occurring before 1 October. On 1 October, the elements o  More...
22 September 2010 13:20

For a limited time only, Personnel Today Plus members can access a full model policy on equal opportunities which takes the Equality Act 2010 into account With elements of the Equality Act coming into force at  More...
22 September 2010 12:59

The Equality Act aims to let employers use positive action to boost workforce diversity. Daniel Thomas examines that and other provisions in the new legislation. The coalition government placed equality at the heart of its employment policy pledg  More...
10 June 2010 10:46

The former archbishop of Canterbury has attacked a court ruling which held a Christian counsellor was fairly sacked from his job after refusing to work with gay couples. Lord Carey said the "deeply worrying" judgment undermined the rights of religio  More...
30 April 2010 08:58

A Christian counsellor who was sacked after he refused to work with gay couples has been refused permission to appeal. Gary McFarlane was dismissed from his employer Relate Avon when he declined to fully commit to providing psycho-sexual counselling  More...
29 April 2010 17:12

A former employee has won thousands of pounds in compensation after a tribunal found owners tried to "de-gay" the pub he worked in, it has emerged. Ex-assistant manager Charles Lisboa was discriminated against by managers of the Pembroke Arms in Ear  More...
25 February 2010 09:03

Discrimination on the grounds of sexual orientation may be against the law, but many 'out' employees continue to experience homophobia in the workplace. Sophie Hudson investigates.   More...
04 February 2010 12:23

The Pope has attacked the UK’s equality legislation Ð thought to include the government’s new Equality Bill Ð ahead of a visit to the UK. Pope Benedict XVI said the UK’s equality legislation imposed “unjust limitation on the freedom of religi  More...
02 February 2010 08:56

The government has been defeated for the third time over provisions in the Equality Bill , which the churches claim would restrict their ability to deny jobs to gay people and transsexuals. The law currently allows religious organisations to ru  More...
26 January 2010 11:26

FACTS Gary McFarlane joined Relate Avon, which provides relationship counselling services, in 2003. He was required to, and did, sign up to Relate's equal opportunities policy. This states that it "is committed to ensuring that no person ... receives  More...
05 January 2010 00:48

Religious employers are likely to lose the opt-out that enables them to refuse to employ homosexual employees, as the European Commission is putting pressure on the government to reverse exemption clauses in Employment Regulations. The move f  More...
24 November 2009 11:19

A chief constable's son has embarrassed his father by displaying offensive placards at a police training event. Jack McPherson, 17, held up banners including one that proclaimed: "All policewomen are dykes", at a riot training exercise. He was   More...
19 October 2009 09:32

A paramedic who allegedly joked that Christmas was to be replaced by "lesbian single-mother Muslim day" is facing a misconduct hearing, the Telegraph has reported. Karl Touhey, 40, made offensive comments about Muslims, obese people, h  More...
02 September 2009 09:36

A lesbian couple who were "humiliated" by sexual jokes at work have won more than £22,000 in compensation. Saleswomen Beth Moules and Sharleen Amos, who worked at water purifier firm Aquatec, were told their relationship was "disgusting" by colleagu  More...
09 July 2009 13:00

HR news and analysis including: the Equality Bill amendment to allow dual discrimination cases; how regulating no-win no-fee lawyers would impact on HR; and we ask for your suggestions on who should make it onto the Personnel Today Power  More...
03 July 2009 17:30

It looks as if religious bodies will have very few options when it comes to refusing to employ gay men and women in non-core roles. Ross Bentley looks at how this clash of ideologies will play out.  More...
01 July 2009 00:45