Increase protection on grounds of colour and nationality
We recommend increased protection from discrimination and harassment on the grounds of colour and nationality across the scope of the race equality legislation, including consideration of the removal or modification of exceptions that apply only on grounds of colour and/ or nationality, unless there are justifiable reasons for doing so, or statutory exception to protection.
Protections should be harmonised upwards to the highest standards. Any regressions in relation to race or ethnic or national origins may be a potential breach under Article 2 of the Windsor Framework.
Define ‘racial grounds’ non-exhaustively, and specifically include caste and descent
The definitions of ‘race’ and ‘racial ground’ should be expanded and be non-exhaustive.
This should be clear in statute and reflect best international practice, in accordance with human rights standards.
We recommend that public bodies be prohibited from racial discrimination or harassment as regards all public functions, except in some narrowly defined limited areas where they can be objectively justified.
This prohibition should apply to all racial grounds. Currently protection only exists on the grounds of race, ethnic or national origins and not on the grounds of colour or nationality.
We recommend the introduction of protection against combined discrimination so that there is legal protection for individuals who experience direct or indirect discrimination, victimisation or harassment because of a combination of equality grounds, including racial grounds.
Courts and tribunals should be able to take into account the effect of the combination of racial discrimination with discrimination on other grounds.
We recommend that employers are liable if they fail to take reasonably practicable steps to prevent the racial harassment of an employee by a third party.
We recommend that employers are liable in circumstances that they ought to have been reasonably aware of the risk of third party harassment, as this should encourage employers to take steps to reduce harassment from the start of a person’s employment. If this is not introduced, employers should be liable when their employee has been subjected to third party harassment on one previous occasion.
Employers should also be liable if, after such harassment has occurred, the employee is treated differently because they rejected or accepted the harassment.
We recommend that the race equality legislation is amended to expand the scope of voluntary positive action that employer, service providers and public bodies can lawfully take in order to promote racial equality, and remove unnecessary barriers relating to collecting statistical information before taking such action.
Positive action should be permitted where an employer, service provider or public body reasonably thinks that a racial group suffer a related disadvantage, or have different needs, or have a disproportionately low rate of participation in an activity. Any action should be a proportionate means of achieving the aim of enabling other persons who share the racial characteristic to minimise the disadvantage, meet their needs or participate in the activity.