What is sex discrimination?
The first thing to note is that sex discrimination is illegal – the Sex Discrimination Act says that you must not be discriminated against because of your sex. Yet, even though the act was passed in 1975 – and refined in 1986 – men’s average income in the UK is almost twice as much as women’s. That’s sex discrimination on a grand scale.
The law recognises two kinds of sex discrimination
- direct discrimination – when you are treated unfairly because of your sex
- indirect discrimination – when conditions that appear to apply to everyone actually discriminate against you on the grounds of your sex. For example, an advert saying that only people more than six feet tall can apply for a certain job would exclude far more women than men, so this would count as indirect discrimination.
Employment
You should not be discriminated against on the grounds of your sex or because you are married:
- when you apply for a job
- in the way you are asked to carry out your job
- in your chances for promotion and training
- if you are dismissed or made redundant
Employers must not say that some jobs are for men, or for women, unless they have good reason (for example, in a job like acting).
Pay
You should not be discriminated against because of your sex. For example, if you are doing a similar job to a male colleague but you are getting paid less, and your employer cannot show that this is for a genuine reason, then you have a right to equal pay.
Education
Facilities at co-ed schools, colleges and universities must be available equally to the sexes: all students, for example, should have access to the National Curriculum; the careers service must not discriminate between boys and girls in their advice. Obviously, single-sex schools can restrict admission to either boys or girls, but they must not restrict the choice of subjects available to the pupils as a result. Although it shouldn’t happen, some girls are still being given advice about careers and education that restricts their views of their options.
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