The Equality Bill promises the biggest shake up in discrimination law since the 1970s. Its provisions will have serious repercussions for employers, especially with regard to positive discrimination, openness on pay and the extension of age discrimi  More...
02 July 2008 15:59

Will the Equality Bill allow employers to effectively tackle the inequalities that still persist in many British workplaces? No. Let's be honest - positive action is discrimination. Whether it is justifiable or, indeed, necessary is a totally   More...
02 July 2008 15:55

Employers will need to tighten up discrimination and flexible working policies following a landmark disability decision, which is almost certain to give rise to new rights for millions of workers, legal experts have warned. An advocate-general at the  More...
04 February 2008 08:01

Miss N Eweida v British Airways Plc FACTS Miss Eweida, a practising Christian, has worked for British Airways (BA) as a member of check-in staff since 1999. She remains employed by BA. As her job is customer-facing, she is required to wear a   More...
29 January 2008 09:54

Employers have backed a positive action campaign to attract more Muslim women into the workplace. Communities secretary Hazel Blears called on employers and local authorities to step up the number of projects that encourage Muslim women into work. A  More...
28 January 2008 10:51

Businesses should not shy away from celebrating Christmas for fear of it being a Christian festival, the Equalities and Human Rights Commission has warned. Chief executive Trevor Phillips has joined high-profile faith leaders from the Hindu, Sikh   More...
21 December 2007 11:44

A British Airways check-in clerk who was suspended for refusing to conceal a small crucifix on a necklace at her post at Heathrow Airport has accused her employers of having a "culture of hostility" to Christianity at an employment tribunal. When Nad  More...
15 November 2007 12:20

The financial cost to employers of unfair practices, and the extent of the ethnic, disabled and gender pay gaps were brought to the fore last week after a fringe event at the Labour Party Conference held by equality advisory organisation Committed  More...
01 October 2007 15:12

One of my employees has refused to attend our annual sales conference taking place at the end of September. He is a Muslim and has informed me that the conference is being held during the month of Ramadan. This is a vital conference and all sales manage  More...
03 September 2007 10:13

As I sit here reading Tony Pettengell's 'Off Message' article entitled " Apocalypse now ..." ( Personnel Today , 5 June), I can't work out if he is being seriously and intentionally offensive to a large number of religious people of all types, atte  More...
03 July 2007 00:00

Tony Pettengell may be right to worry about some of the things he mentions in his 'Apocalypse now...' article ( Personnel Today , 5 June), but the amendment to the Employment Equality (Religion or Belief) Regulations to include 'any philosophical belief  More...
03 July 2007 00:00

The government has published a consultation on the Discrimination Law Review , which aims to modernise discrimination legislation. It includes proposals for a Single Equality Bill that would will put the law on equality and discrimination   More...
12 June 2007 12:40

Only a third of employers have an explicit policy on religion and belief in the workplace, a study has found. The proportion of employers surveyed with an explicit policy is far higher in the public sector (55%) than in the voluntary sector (31%) or   More...
19 February 2007 08:07

A Muslim employee made a request for leave to allow him to attend the Hajj in Mecca and then visit family. We agreed that he would use his four weeks' holiday entitlement, and we granted him three additional weeks' unpaid leave. He was due to return to   More...
23 January 2007 00:00

Discrimination laws are a worry for employers during the festive season, but they need not be.  More...
12 December 2006 00:00

Commons leader Jack Straw has spoken out on yet another weighty employment issue – tinsel. Having backed the right of British Airways staff to wear the Christian cross, and slammed Muslims' use of veils, Straw yesterday turned his attention to Christ  More...
08 December 2006 10:43

Almost 100 MPs are protesting against the British Airways (BA) decision to ban employees from wearing visible religious symbols. The protesters – including 30 Labour MPs, 37 Conservatives, 16 Liberal Democrats and 11 MPs from other parties – have s  More...
23 November 2006 16:21

Secretary of state for communities and local government Ruth Kelly has told new Commission for Racial Equality (CRE) chairman Kay Hampton that she will be crucial to the body's legacy. Hampton replaces Trevor Phillips as chairman of the CRE on 1 De  More...
23 November 2006 11:01

A woman prevented from wearing a crucifix while working for British Airways (BA) has lost her attempt to have the decision overturned. Nadia Eweida, who has worked as a check-in worker at the airline for seven years, had filed a complaint after she   More...
21 November 2006 10:28

There is no case for allowing religious beliefs to take precedence over equality laws when it comes to recruitment, according to the future head of the new super equalities body. Trevor Phillips, who will become the chairman of the Commission for Equ  More...
17 October 2006 08:00